Yates’ Program Record Leads Lipscomb Men to Vanderbilt Opener Title, Women Perform Well in Season Opener

Tuesday, September 1

Nashville, TN

Lipscomb University

Belmont/Vandy Opener

Yates’ Program Record Leads Lipscomb Men to Vanderbilt Opener Title, Women Perform Well in Season Opener

9/1/2026 9:31:00 AM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Lipscomb Cross Country opened its 2026 campaign with a strong showing at the Belmont/Vandy Opener in Nashville, highlighted by a first-place team finish from the men and a new program record from Kobe Yates. The Lipscomb women added a third-place finish in the four-team field.

The Bisons dominated the men's race, taking each of the top three individual spots and placing five runners inside the top 10 to finish first among five teams.

Yates led the way with a first-place finish, crossing the line in 15:06.72 to set a new Lipscomb program record. Owen Horevay followed closely behind in second place with a time of 15:36.21, while Brennan Kaplan completed a sweep of the top three with a 15:44.36 finish.

Landon Jonas and Sam Loftin rounded out Lipscomb's five top-10 finishers. Jonas placed ninth in 15:57.10, followed by Loftin in 10th at 15:57.71.

Gavin Bacus finished 26th with a time of 16:41.23, Noah Wasserman crossed the line in 29th at 16:49.19 and Michael Polizzi placed 30th in 17:13.62.

On the women's side, Lipscomb finished third out of four teams behind a top-10 performance from Brinkley Cooper. Cooper paced the Bisons with a ninth-place finish, clocking a time of 18:51.02.

Charli Keely and Carly Miller finished back-to-back in 16th and 17th, respectively. Keely crossed the line in 19:22.00, while Miller followed at 19:36.96.

Bethany Wright added a 19th-place finish with a time of 19:52.72, while Maggie Bellamy rounded out the Lipscomb lineup in 27th at 20:40.97.

The season-opening meet gave the Bisons an early benchmark, with the men claiming the team title behind Yates' record-setting performance and the women placing three runners inside the top 20.