Will Mulherin | Senior | Yorktown, Va.
Will Mulherin was named the Inside Hokie Sports’ men’s cross country athlete of the year a year ago, and this season, he enjoyed arguably the best season ever by a Tech men’s cross country athlete.
Mulherin finished in the top 10 in four of the six races in which he ran during the cross country season. He came in 13th at the Virginia Tech Invitational and then was second at the Charlotte Invitational and sixth at the NCAA Pre-Nationals held in Louisville, Ky.
But his crowning moment came Oct. 27 when he won the ACC title at the ACC Championships held on Tech’s home course. He bested the field with a time of 23:37.3 and became the first Tech cross country runner to win a conference championship. Behind him, the Hokies won the team title, which was also the program’s first.
Mulherin went on to finish seventh at the NCAA Southeast Regional held in Charlotte, running the course in a time of 29:52.51 (10K). At the NCAA Championships held in Louisville, Ky., he finished in a tie for 28th, running that course in a time of 29:52.70. He became the first two-time All-American in cross country at Tech.
Mulherin also excelled in indoor track, though his track exploits weren’t taken into consideration for his being name the magazine’s men’s cross country athlete of the year. His victory in the 3,000-meter run lifted the Hokies to the ACC team title at the ACC Indoor Track and Field Championships. He claimed seventh place at the NCAA’s indoor meet to earn All-America honors. He finished his career as a two-time All-American in both track and cross country.
