After a week off following the Blue and Gold Alumni Invitational on Sept. 1, the Lions were back in action, participating in the Bill Fritz Invitational at Rowan University on Saturday, Sept. 15.
The Lions opened up a long and taxing season at Green Lane Fields in Ewing, New Jersey by participating in the Blue and Gold Alumni Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 1.
Represented by nine participants in last year’s NCAA Division III Championship, the men’s and women’s cross country team looks to continue winning in the upcoming season.
The men’s and women’s cross country teams ran one last time in this year’s NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships held at Principia College in Elsah, Illinois
The women’s cross country team finished fifth at the NCAA Atlantic Regional Championships and qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships for the first time since 2013.
The men’s and women’s cross country teams outran the competition at this year’s New Jersey Athletic Conference Championship in Galloway, New Jersey, on Saturday, Oct. 28.
The men's and women's cross country teams competed amongst 450 colleges and high schools in the 44th annual Paul Short Run at Lehigh University on Friday, Sept. 29.
After a three week hiatus, the men’s and women’s cross country teams competed at the Osprey Open at Stockton University. The men finished second at the meet while the women claimed fourth place.
The men’s and women’s cross country teams had a busy opening weekend. On Friday, Sept. 1, the Lions competed at the Houghton Short Course Twilight Invitational. Then on Saturday, Sept. 2, the Lions competed against Division I teams at Rosedale Park in Pennington, New Jersey. Both teams came in first at Houghton, New York.
After appearing in the 2016 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships, the Lions aim for the podium. The men’s cross country team will strive to claim their 24th consecutive New Jersey Athletic Conference title and to finish first at the Atlantic Regional Championships. Senior Dale Johnson commands an experienced squad featuring juniors Quinn Wasko, Matt Saponara and Brian Mitchell. Last year, the Lions qualified for nationals, though an at-large bid. Johnson looks to crack the top 15 at the 8000-meter course in regionals. Meanwhile, Wasko will attempt to improve from his 43rd place finish along with Saponaro.
“I didn’t see that coming,” Cooper said. Assistant coach Michael Walker was more surprised by the time frame in which she got to nationals. “I could see it happening later on as a senior, so this is ahead of schedule from what I thought was possible,” Walker said. Cooper previously played soccer, but did not enjoy it, so her mother suggested she try cross country. The new sport resonated with her. Unfortunately, during junior and senior year of high school, fractures and shin problems prevented her from running. Upon graduation, she chose to attend the College because her brother graduated from there, and if she wanted to continue to run, the cross country program was there, ready and waiting.
