Sophia Kennedy became the first from Stanford to earn Atlantic Coast Conference athlete of the week honors in any sport after being named ACC Women’s Cross Country Performer of the Week on Tuesday.
By winning the USF Invitational at San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park on Friday, the sophomore earned her first collegiate cross country victory. Kennedy, from Indianapolis, Indiana, ran a 6-kilometer time of 20:22.2 to help Stanford to a team victory in its season opener.
The Cardinal scored 18 points, placing five runners in the top seven, including the top three finishers.
Kennedy continued her momentum from the outdoor track season. In her two final track races last spring, Kennedy won the 5,000 at the NCAA West Prelims and placed 11th at the NCAA Championships in a Stanford freshman outdoor record of 15:33.29.
Kennedy and her Cardinal teammates are in Boulder, Colorado, at a team camp. Stanford’s next race is September 27 at the Gans Creek Classic in Columbia, Missouri.