Lucky Maila and Humed Nura paced the Coppin State University men’s cross country team to a fifth-place finish at the 2026 MEAC Championships on Oct. 30 at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C. Coppin State finished fifth among eight schools with 128 points, while its top five runners completed the 8K course in an average time of 26:42.
The result marked Coppin State’s best performance at the MEAC Cross Championships since 2015, when the team finished fourth among 12 schools. The meet also concluded the men’s cross country season.
Maila and Nura Lead Coppin State University
Maila finished 16th in 25:37.8, recording a season-best time. Nura placed 18th in 25:44.6, also posting a season-best mark.
Asa Francis finished 29th in 26:46.2 and set a personal record. Etiam Torgbenu and Aaiden Clark rounded out Coppin State’s top five runners, posting personal records with times of 27:41.4 and 27:42.5, respectively, after kicking hard down the final half of the course to secure fifth place for the Navy & Gold.
Elijah Hicks placed 36th in 28:19.8. Elijah Collins finished in 29:33.5, while Rayshawn Harris completed the race in 31:54.1.
Coppin State University Opens Indoor Season Dec. 5
Coppin State is scheduled to open the indoor season at the Youree Spence-Garcia Invitational on Dec. 5. St. John’s University will host the meet at the Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex in Staten Island, N.Y.
Maryland Sports Blog Take
Coppin State University’s fifth-place result was the men’s cross country program’s strongest finish at the MEAC Championships since 2015. Maila and Nura led the way with season-best times, while Francis added a personal record as Coppin State totaled 128 points.
Source: Original report
