The College's men's cross-country team ignited its season by taking first place in its fall opener and setting an individual course record. The women posted a third place finish at the Connecticut College Invitational at Harkness Memorial Park on Saturday.
In his inaugural first place College finish, senior Adrian Cline bested the pack by running a record breaking time of 25:33 on the 8,000 meter course.
"We weren't going out to win it," Cline said. "We were going out to put in a good race. A group of us were taking it easy, and started pushing it after the middle of the race. I got the lead and was able to hold off the second place finisher."
The College scored 56 points to win the meet. Second place finisher Tufts University, scored 78 points to narrowly edge third place finisher, Southern Connecticut State by 79 points.
"A couple of veteran guys ran real well and it was really exciting," Head coach Steve Dolan said. "The first three guys had great races, and the next two did as well."
Senior Brian Brach placed third in the race with a time of 25:37, followed by junior Brian Donavon who placed fourth with a time of 25:44.
Junior Sean Lesniak finished 23rd by running a 26:35, and freshman Marc Altenau finished 25th with his time of 27:35.
"I was surprised and happy with our finish," Cline said.
The women's cross-country team, ranked 6th, took third place with 86 points. The Trinity College Tigers won the meet with 18 points, and top-ranked Williams College Purple Cows took second with 86 points.
"The team had some good runs and should continue to improve as the season goes on," Dolan said.
Senior Beth Vesey led the Lions by posting a time of 18:34, and finishing in second place, in the 5,000 meter run. Senior Lindsay Scarborough finished 13th with a time of 19:18, and senior Erin Cahill came in 22nd with a time 19:28.
Sophomore Kara Horner and freshman Christine Nystrom also scored points for the Lions with their 23rd and 26th place finishes.
"It was a good start and a good weekend for the entire team," Vesey said. "Both teams should be competitive in the New Jersey Athletic Conference as well as the Atlantic Region," Dolan said.
