For some of Princeton’s runners, today’s Heptagonal Championships will be the fourth race of the season. While every race of the Tigers’ season is important, at Heps the teams will be contending for the Ivy League title.
At last year’s championships the men’s team took second, falling to Columbia by a single point. Then-sophomore Brian Leung took third in the race overall, and classmate Donn Cabral finished sixth.
A year later, the No. 18 men have even more momentum entering Heps. Cabral, now the team’s captain, finished in first place earlier this month at the Wisconsin Adidas Invitational. Strong runs from Cabral, Leung and junior Joe Stilin have put Princeton on the national radar. The Tigers won their season opener at the Spiked Shoe Invitational, placed third at the Wisconsin Invitational and took fifth place at the Pre-Nationals Meet. With these improvements, the Tigers are well on track to have an exciting meet today.
The men’s season has been all about improvements, and the runners have delivered. However, for the No. 18 women, Heps will be about keeping a tradition alive. So far, the Tigers haven’t disappointed, but they still have large shoes to fill.
Princeton’s women made history at Heps last year. In addition to winning the Ivy League title for the fourth year in a row, the Tigers swept the first five places — the first time in the history of the meet that a team finished with a perfect score of 15.
The women have not graduated all their talent either. Junior Alex Banfich, senior Sarah Cummings and senior Ashley Higginson placed second, third and fourth last year, respectively. Former star Liz Costello ’10 won the race. Judging by these runners’ seasons so far, they are well poised to repeat their performance. Banfich finished second at the Pre-National Meet in Terre Haute, Ind., and Cummings placed first at the Harvard-Yale-Princeton Meet earlier this fall.
“Heps is always a really special race because the rivalries go so far back between the schools,” Banfich said in an e-mail Thursday.
As old as these rivalries are, Banfich noted that the competition remains respectful. “We all have a mutual respect for one another because we have such similar college experiences,” she said. “The league is relatively small — as opposed to [the] SEC or Big 10 — and cross country is just an intimate sport by nature.”
Unlike many athletes who compete for a single season, cross country runners often also run in the indoor and outdoor track seasons. Banfich explained that this unique situation makes the Heptagonal Championships all the more special.
“The atmosphere is just charged with anticipation and excitement,” Banfich said. “Although cross country is technically an individual sport, the team spirit is more tangible at this meet than any other. It’s all about the team tomorrow.”
Last year’s performance will be challenging to live up to. However, Princeton has already bested each of its Ivy League rivals so far. Other teams in the Ancient Eight fell to the Tigers at Pre-Nationals, the Notre Dame Invitational, the Spiked Shoe Invitational and the HYP Meet. Banfich said she is confident but cautious going into the weekend’s races.
“As far as rankings go, we’re the only nationally ranked team in the league right now, but that doesn’t make us feel safe by any means,” Banfich said.
As in any sport, though, injuries and sickness can change the course of a season. Freshman Marisa Cummings had her strong opening season cut short by an unfortunate injury.
“There are always a ton of unknown variables in cross country races,” Banfich explained. “We just have to worry about what we can control and do our best, and hopefully it’s enough for our championship.”
The Heptagonal Championships is each team’s last meet before the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships. Luckily for Princeton, the Tigers will have another weekend to recuperate after Heps today.
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