This past weekend, our men's and women's cross country teams opened their seasons at Case Western Reserve's home course on a hot and humid day. At this point in the season, our program focuses on gaining strength and endurance, with speed work coming in later months. Despite the heat, the rolling hills, and the high mileage our team has run recently, the athletes turned in outstanding performances.
The Gator women finished third behind nationally-ranked programs Case Western (#10) and Oberlin (#26). The team was led by Mia Symoniak (jr., 10th place), with sophomores Katie Stancik (13th) and Rachel Hutchinson (17th) finishing close behind. Rounding out the top five were sophomore Lindsay Pugh (35th) and freshman Hallie Dilley (37th). All four returners competed in last year's national championship meet. With several additional underclassmen training hard and three dedicated seniors providing leadership, we expect the women to continue to improve throughout the season.
The Allegheny College men's program also returns four athletes who were members of last year's squad that finished 7th at Nationals, including sophomore Zac Ross, juniors Tony Dipre and Devon Flynnperrault, and senior Matt Hoy. On Saturday, the team finished second behind Case Western's nationally ranked program. The men had an excellent 1-5 spread, with Ross (2nd), Dipre (6th), Hoy (10th), Flynnperrault (13th), and junior Jake Zimmerman (15th) finishing within 55 seconds of one another. Not only did the team have a fast top five, they showed they have the depth to return to the national championships this November. Ryan Hanson (19th) and Jeramie Parker (21st) finished within 20 seconds of Zimmerman, and Allegheny placed 10 runners before Baldwin Wallace's fifth man.
--Cassie Stilley; Assistant Coach
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