As collegiate competition goes, cross country has a long tradition at Princeton. The Tigers held their first meet on Nov. 16, 1906, more than a century ago. Entering 2010, Princeton had already seen some impressive runners, including six All-American men and four All-American women.So when the men’s cross-country team has its best season in history, it means something. And after the Tigers’ performance Monday at the NCAA championship in Terre Haute, Ind., nobody can doubt that 2010 has been that season.The men placed 12th in the 10-kilometer race, with juniors Brian Leung and Donn Cabral receiving All-America honors. The women’s team continued its tradition of excellence by placing 15th in the 6-kilometer race, and junior Alex Banfich clinched All-America honors.Leung was Princeton’s top finisher in the men’s race, placing 21st individually with a time of 30 minutes, 18.3 seconds. Leung kept his pace alongside Cabral throughout the race, with the two runners often running within a second of each other. Cabral, who is captain of the squad, finished 34th, clocking in at 30:26.4Monday’s race marked the first time in the history of the men’s team that two runners earned All-America honors in the same year. The last Princetonian to receive All-America honors was Michael Maag ’09, who did so in 2007.Senior Mark Amirault, junior Max Kaulbach and senior Kyle Soloff also earned points for Princeton. They placed 52nd, 145th and 180th, respectively.Princeton had a lot of momentum going into nationals, but the stars were not exactly aligned for the historic performance. Runners had to deal with high winds during the race, including winds up to 30 mph.It would be an exaggeration to say that the Tigers were underdogs at nationals. The men were coming off a comfortable victory over rival Villanova at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional meet on Nov. 13 and an Ivy League title at Heptagonal Championships last month. However, the Tigers needed to overcome stiff competition to finish in 12th place, besting their No. 17 national ranking before the meet. During its rise in the ranks, Princeton overtook No. 16 William & Mary, No. 15 Brigham Young University, No. 10 Syracuse, No. 7 Colorado and No. 5 New Mexico. Princeton was also the only Ivy League to race at nationals.Princeton did not send its men to nationals last year. The Tigers placed sixth of 28 teams at regionals and took second at Heps, and only one runner went to Terre Haute individually. This year’s team, despite having lost only three runners to graduation, is indistinguishable — and critics have taken notice. Head coach Steve Dolan earned himself the Mid-Atlantic Regional Coach of the Year award for his team’s improvement.In the women’s race, junior Alex Banfich bested her time at nationals last year to finish in 20:36.0. Her 20th-place finish earned her All-America honors. She is only the fifth Princetonian to do so since the women’s cross country team began varsity competition in 1978. This is not her first All-America honor, though. She earned the equivalent accolade in May for her performance during the outdoor track season. If Banfich keeps up her pace, she will match Liz Costello ’10, who received All-America honors both her junior and senior years for cross country.Senior co-captains Sarah Cummings and Ashley Higginson finished 57th and 74th, respectively, with times of 21:03.0 and 21:09.4. Sophomore Abby Levene and Alexis Mikaelian, who placed 179th and 195th, respectively, rounded out the Tigers’ scoring pool. Levene is also a staff writer for The Daily Princetonian. Like the men, the women had to deal with less-than-ideal racing conditions.“The conditions weren’t great (gusting wind) and a lot of teams were thrown off,” Cummings noted in an e-mail.The women’s performance was an improvement on its No. 25 national ranking. Princeton surpassed teams like No. 4 Washington and No. 13 Virginia, in addition to rivals like No. 23 Penn State.“It was really exciting to beat a lot of teams that had beaten us throughout the season, especially Penn State, who nipped us last weekend at regionals,” Cummings said. “The season has been full of ups and downs and unexpected obstacles, so it was great to pull it together for this race when it mattered.”
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