Men’s cross country team takes second at UAAs

On Saturday, the Carnegie Mellon cross country teams traveled to Brandeis University in Boston to compete in the University Athletic Association Championships. The 18th-ranked men’s team continued to dominate, finishing second out of eight teams with 68 points. The number-two ranked New York University won the championship with a record-low 20 points.

The women’s team took seventh out of eight teams with 198 points, while Washington (Mo.) University won the team championship with 31 points.

Despite the rainy conditions, the men’s team saw five runners in the top 20. Junior Brian Harvey continued to impress, leading the team to finish fourth overall with a time of 25:16. Fifth-year Geoff Misek took 10th with a time of 25:49 and sophomore Dario Donatelli placed 15th overall with a time of 26:01.

Juniors Ryan Anderson and Breck Fresen finished 19th and 20th both with a time of 26:08. Junior Mike Condon ran an impressive personal-best time of 26:19 to take 29th overall.

“The course was a mess. I didn’t even bother to put dry socks on after my warm-up because I knew they’d be wet after my first step,” Condon said. “Even though the conditions weren’t ideal, it was still fun running in the mud and just enjoying the added dimension.”

First-years Dan Addis and J.P. Allera continued to have strong rookie seasons, finishing 41st and 42nd overall both with a time of 26:38. Senior Mark Tressler and sophomore Chris Rizzo finished 71st and 72nd overall with times of 28:00 and 28:03, respectively.

“If this team runs as well as it’s capable of, it could easily be the best finish in school history, and that’s what we all want to see,” Condon said.

On the women’s side, junior Carolyn Clayton led her team to finish 26th overall with a time of 24:16. First-year Rebecca Hachey and sophomore Anna Lenhart placed 43rd and 50th overall with times of 25:20 and 25:32, respectively.

First-year Kristen Staab took 53rd overall with a time of 25:39. Behind Staab, junior Chrissy Krutz placed 55th overall with a time of 25:42. First-year Laura McKee and senior Erin Gagnon finished 60th and 63rd overall with times of 26:01 and 26:08, respectively.

Senior Ashley Bakelmun took 72nd overall with a time of 27:50. Junior Rachel Perry and first-year Amal El-Ghazaly finished 74th and 76th overall with times of 28:14 and 28:47, respectively.

“This meet, our team did a great job working together throughout the race,” Krutz said. “Hopefully the large pack we had with our middle runners can move up even closer to Carolyn in the next race.”

The Tartans will travel to Bethlehem, Pa. for the important NCAA Division III Mideast Regional on Saturday, Nov. 10. The top teams from the regional will advance to the National Championships at St. Olaf College in Minnesota.