TOWSON, Md. --- The Moravian College men's cross country team has been selected fourth in the 2014 Landmark Conference Preseason Poll as selected by the conference's head coaches.
Moravian received one first place vote and 38 points while defending champion Susquehanna University was selected first with five first-place votes and 66 points. Juniata College and Elizabethtown College are tied for second in the poll with 50 points as Juniata garnered the final two first-place votes.
The Greyhounds, who won the Landmark in 2011 and 2012, return six runners from last year and will be led by two-time reigning Landmark Runner of the Year senior Dillon Farrell and three-time Landmark All-Conference First Team honoree senior Alec Duncan.
"Dillon and Alec are in by far the best shape they've ever been in entering a cross country season," stated Head Coach Jesse Baumann. "I'm expecting both to have great seasons. After that we have a lot of potential and talent that hasn't proven themselves yet on an 8k course, so I certainly agree with the preseason ranking. Susquehanna has the most experience coming back with a very strong top 5, and Etown and Juniata both have some nice depth to compliment some strong front runners.
"I'm excited about what the season could have in store," Baumann continued. "Some of our other returners put in really good summers and have already made big jumps in their fitness compared to where they were 12 months ago. On paper we have a lot of potential from our freshman class, but the acclimation to 8k takes time, sometimes it takes a few races, sometimes it takes a full year so we don't know what to expect from them just yet. As long as we can stay healthy, I think we can have a much better finish to 2014 than we did in 2013."
The Greyhounds will begin their 2014 season on Friday, August 29 at the Lehigh University Invitational to be run on the Goodman Campus course beginning at 6:15 p.m. Goucher College will host the 2014 Landmark Conference Championship meet on Saturday, November 1.
2014 Landmark Men's Cross Country Preseason Poll
|
Rank |
Institution (First Place) |
Points |
|
1. |
Susquehanna (5) |
66 |
|
2. |
Juniata (2) |
50 |
|
|
Elizabethtown |
50 |
|
4. |
Moravian (1) |
38 |
|
5. |
USMMA |
25 |
|
6. |
Scranton |
20 |
|
7. |
Catholic |
16 |
|
8. |
Goucher |
7 |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, August 26, 2014
Contact: Mark Fleming (610) 861-1472, (610) 390-7545 or (610) 758-8721
MORAVIAN MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY SELECTED FOURTH IN LANDMARK POLL
TOWSON, Md. --- The Moravian College men's cross country team has been selected fourth in the 2014 Landmark Conference Preseason Poll as selected by the conference's head coaches.
Moravian received one first place vote and 38 points while defending champion Susquehanna University was selected first with five first-place votes and 66 points. Juniata College and Elizabethtown College are tied for second in the poll with 50 points as Juniata garnered the final two first-place votes.
The Greyhounds, who won the Landmark in 2011 and 2012, return six runners from last year and will be led by two-time reigning Landmark Runner of the Year senior Dillon Farrell (North Wales, Pa./Wissahickon HS) and three-time Landmark All-Conference First Team honoree senior Alec Duncan (Bloomfield, N.J./Bloomfield HS).
"Dillon and Alec are in by far the best shape they've ever been in entering a cross country season," stated Head Coach Jesse Baumann. "I'm expecting both to have great seasons. After that we have a lot of potential and talent that hasn't proven themselves yet on an 8k course, so I certainly agree with the preseason ranking. Susquehanna has the most experience coming back with a very strong top 5, and Etown and Juniata both have some nice depth to compliment some strong front runners.
"I'm excited about what the season could have in store," Baumann continued. "Some of our other returners put in really good summers and have already made big jumps in their fitness compared to where they were 12 months ago. On paper we have a lot of potential from our freshman class, but the acclimation to 8k takes time, sometimes it takes a few races, sometimes it takes a full year so we don't know what to expect from them just yet. As long as we can stay healthy, I think we can have a much better finish to 2014 than we did in 2013."
The Greyhounds will begin their 2014 season on Friday, August 29 at the Lehigh University Invitational to be run on the Goodman Campus course beginning at 6:15 p.m. Goucher College will host the 2014 Landmark Conference Championship meet on Saturday, November 1.
2014 Landmark Men's Cross Country Preseason Poll
Rank Institution (First Place) Points
1. Susquehanna (5) 66
2. Juniata (2) 50
Elizabethtown 50
4. Moravian (1) 38
5. USMMA 25
6. Scranton 20
7. Catholic 16
8. Goucher 7
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