Cross Country: Runners light up leaderboard in Maryland

It is often said that success breeds more success. That adage certainly applies to the women’s cross country team as of late.

Last weekend, the Tigers finished second out of 18 squads at the Fordham Fiasco in New York. This weekend, Princeton did itself one better, securing a first-place finish at the Cappy Anderson Invitational, which was hosted by the University of Maryland Eastern Shore.

“We are excited to have had a strong showing at the first two meets,” senior Liz Costello said. “Practices have been going just as well, if not better, than last year’s, and our trainer, Jenn Lister, has been keeping us healthy and ready to go.”

In the 5K race, seven Tigers finished in the top 10, giving Princeton a total of 20 points and the victory over eight other schools. The race was especially close, with all members crossing the finish line within a 0.48-second span. Overall, the Orange and Black averaged 17:48.65 for the race.

Brooklyne Ridder, a runner from Penn State, finished first overall with a time of 17 minutes, 41.53 seconds. Senior Reilly Kiernan led all Princeton runners, crossing the finish line with a time of 17:48.51, and earning second place. Kiernan is also an associate news editor for The Daily Princetonian.

Not far behind Kiernan were fellow seniors Alexa Glencer, who finished in third with a time of 17:48.53, and Costello, who finished in fourth at 17:48.55. Junior Sarah Cummings, sophomore Alex Banfich and junior Ashley Higginson rounded out the top seven.

Costello said she was satisfied with the way the team performed overall.

“We were really proud of coming in as a solid group in the top 10,” Costello said. “We were trying to run together without pushing beyond a ‘tempo’ workout pace. As for the Tigers just outside the top seven, there were some strong races despite the course’s uneven footing.”

Princeton’s freshmen also fared well. Newcomers Mel Newbery and Alexis Mikaelian finished the race in 13th and 14th, respectively.

After finishing 11th out of 16 squads at the Fordham Fiasco last weekend, the men’s cross country team vastly improved upon its performance, claiming first place in the 8K race at the Cappy Anderson Invitational. Sophomore Donn Cabral finished first in the 8K race, clocking in with a time of 25:13.49. Junior captain Rob Speare finished just two-hundredths of a second behind him.

Sophomore Sean Wilson, junior Hudson Andrews and junior Dennis Walsh also placed in the top 10 in the race.

Overall, the Tigers collected 29 points in the 8K race, nine points fewer than second-place St. Joseph’s in a competition where the team with the fewest points wins the meet.

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The men and women will get an opportunity to repeat their successes on the University of Maryland’s course, when the school hosts the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional on Nov. 14.

Costello said this weekend was a learning opportunity for the women’s team.

“This past weekend at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, our team’s goal was primarily to familiarize ourselves with the course, since that will be the course for the Mid-Atlantic Regional meet later in the season,” Costello said. “This past weekend also functioned as a pseudo-workout in which the current top seven Tigers could practice running in a pack at a decent pace.”

Up next for both the men’s and women’s squads are the Notre Dame Invitational and the Paul Short Invitational, both on Oct. 2.