POUGHKEEPSIE, New York – The Marist men's and women's cross country teams will open their 2018 campaign with the program's annual home meet, the Marist Invitational, at Vassar Farms on Saturday, September 1st. The men's race will begin at 9:00 a.m. while the women will start at 9:30 a.m.
The men were voted fourth in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Preseason Poll earlier this week, and are bringing back five out of the seven runners they sent to NCAA Division I Northeast Regionals last season. The top returner is senior Michael Kennedy, who placed fourth at last year's Marist Invitational with a personal best of 19:22.7 in the 6k. Other members of the regionals squad joining him again are Alexander Hogue, Christopher Rivas, Palmer Weimann and Riley Hughes. Â
Marist's men placed fifth at the 2017 MAAC Cross Country Championships, and are hoping to improve upon that this season with some added depth from a large recruiting class of nine freshmen.
The women's cross country team received their first USTFCCCA Preseason Ranking on Tuesday as the No. 11 team in the Northeast. Six out of seven members of last year's regionals squad will return to the team to build upon the successful 2017 season.
"We're excited because we return such a big core from last year's record-setting team" announced Coach Chuck Williams. "We hope to elevate the program to an even higher level this year, but we know it's going to take a lot of blood, sweat and tears to get there. Our focus is to get better in practice every day, every week and not look too far ahead."
The Red Fox women were voted second in the MAAC Preseason Poll, and were runners-up at the 2017 MAAC Cross Country Championships. The returning group features Maria Smith, Gianna Tedeschi, Shea Bohan, Emily Burns, Jordan Casey and Hayley Collins. There are plenty of talented returners and freshmen that will be representing Marist this season, and any number of girls could contribute to the team's success at any meet.
Following the meet, the seniors of the track and cross country teams will be honored during the Senior Day Ceremony. Men being honored are Eamonn Beers, Andrew Burns, Brian Henderson, Daniel Hillman, Joshua Hindle, Riley Hughes, Michael Kennedy, Tanner Senius and Palmer Weimann. Women being recognized are Hannah Albert, Deborah Boerke, Shea Bohan, Emily Burns, Jordan Casey, Kerry Gaye, Jessica Howe, Katherine Miale, Ericka Stewart and Ashley Wallace.
