By Malcolm Luck
Staff Writer
Following a pair of middle-of-the-pack finishes from the men’s and women’s cross country teams last week at the Bill Fritz Invitational, both teams thrived at the Osprey Open on Saturday, Sept. 22 at Stockton University.
The men’s squad took second place out of 14 teams while the women placed third out of 12.
Stockton University dominated the 8k event for the men’s team, but the College was not far behind. Posting the best mark for the Lions was freshman Andrew Chamberlain, who crossed the finish line before his peers with a time of 27:38.93, earning him ninth place in a packed slate of 112 competitors. Junior Chris Coombs trailed by less than three seconds, trotting in tenth place at 27:41.79. Sophomore Noah Preihs rounded out the top-three for the Lions, coming in 12th at 27:49.19.
Other notable finishes for the men’s team come from a trio of freshmen, led by Jack Ennis in 15th place who completed the race in 28:03.29. Gabriel Calandri took 19th place finishing in 28:48.71 and John Raisley placed 22nd in 28:56.36.
Despite a plethora of impressive finishes, Stockton University peppered opponents, accounting for four of the top-10 finishes. The school collectively earned an average time of 27:25.19, which is an impressive 35-second advantage over the Lions, who followed with an average time of 28:00.39.
The women’s team followed up with an impactful performance as well.
The women’s 6k results were led by junior Ryann Reagan and senior Kelly Morrison, respectively capturing 16th and 17th places in a field of 117 competitors with their times of 26:10.01 and 26:10.62.
The College’s runners also claimed consecutive places moments after, beginning with freshman Jazzlyn Diaz in 20th place finishing in 26:19.67 and sophomore Casey Hopkins, clocking in at 26:22.60, earning her 21st.
Overall, the women’s team earned an average time of 26:24.61, ultimately falling once again to Stockton in second place and Jefferson University in first.
Both teams will travel to Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania on Saturday, Sept. 29 to partake in the Paul Short Invitational. The men are scheduled to run at 12:15 p.m. while the women are set to begin at 1:00 p.m.
