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Alex Lewis helped build a championship cross country program in high school at Harlan County. He’s on his way to accomplishing the same feat in college at Alice Lloyd.

Lewis, a sophomore, recently competed with his teammates in the NCCAA nationals after placing eighth in the River States Conference meet. He set a personal record in the Louisville Classic with a time of 27:57.

“Alex is one of those young men that every coach wants on their team. He puts in the work during the summer, comes to practice every day with a strong work ethic and leaves it all on the course every time we race,” said Alice Lloyd coach Brandon Arnold. “Even more importantly, he does exceptionally well in the classroom and carries himself the right way. That’s why it was so great to see him succeed in our biggest meet of the year. All his hard work paid off, and I couldn’t have been more proud of him. The best is yet to come for Alex. His goal is to be an All-American, and he was only three spots away from achieving it. That’s why when he crossed the line he wasn’t happy with his strong finish. I could see the fire in his eyes, and I know Alex will use this as motivation. I’m excited for his future. I believe he is going to keep improving and do some big things during his time here at ALC.

Lewis was part of regional championship teams at HCHS in 2015 and 2016 and participated on four straight Area 9 championship squads.

“I’m so proud of Alex. He was a key part of the building process and HCHS and now he’s doing the same at Alice Lloyd,” Harlan County coach Ryan Vitatoe said. “I’m not the least bit surprised by his success. He’s an incredibly hard worker and it shows through his achievements. He also is a great example to the kids in my program showing you can do whatever you want if you put the work in. I’m most proud of how he keeps reaching out to our younger guys to encourage them to pursue running at the next level. That says a lot about his character.”

The HCHS cross country/track programs have had success in sending runners to college with 29 over the 12-year history of the program. Cody Howard and Andrew Crawford are also running at Alice Lloyd. Abby Stephens and Madison Blanton are members of the track program at the University of the Cumberlands.