BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Seven members of the Moravian University men's and women's cross country teams earned 2022 NCAA Division III Metro All-Region from the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association for finishing in the Top 35 during the 2022 Metro Regional hosted by DeSales University on Saturday, November 12.
\The Greyhounds' men's squad took third of 25 teams in the regional and had its five scoring runners all achieve All-Region accolades, the largest number of Greyhounds to earn All-Region in a single season in program history. Sophomore Owen Nahf led the Hounds' contingent with a 14th place finish out of 176 runners in the race as he covered the 8,000- meter course in a time of 26:20. Senior Shane Houghton was a spot behind Nahf in 15th at 26:23 to record his second career All-Region honor while junior Josh Mangini took 16th in a time of 26:28. Sophomore Jake Farrell finished 18th in the race at 26:31 while sophomore Nathan Hajel earned All-Region honors for the second straight year as he placed 24th in a time of 26:40.
"Prior to Saturday, the most All-Region runners our program had in a single meet was three," stated Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Jesse Baumann. "We were six seconds away from doubling that. We had the smallest 1–5 time gap in the entire field. One year ago, we had two runners in the top 24, we had five yesterday. The men beat teams like Rowan and TCNJ who were ranked nationally this year. There aren't enough ways to describe what an amazing race this was for our men's team, and especially the top five who earned this distinction.
"We discussed a plan for this race which we had built into our training for literally months, and Owen, Shane, Josh, Jake, and Nathaniel could not have executed it more perfectly, literally improving our team score at each checkpoint on the course," continued Baumann. "Owen, Shane, and Josh were the first three to not make the NCAA meet, which made this weekend bittersweet, but it wasn't from a lack of effort or execution. With 600m to go, Owen was heading to NCAAs but on a turn, his footing gave out in the mud, and he fell, which opened the door for the other runner to get into the 7th qualifying spot. Sometimes things beyond your control happen, but there's nothing to hang our heads about. Jake had his lifetime best and was as focused as I've ever seen him race. Nathaniel and Josh had a remarkable final 4k to the race. Shane and Owen positioned themselves perfectly. It was a remarkable day and we could not be more proud of the team and these men for how they composed themselves and competed this weekend. The future has never been brighter for our program."
The women's team finished sixth of 24 squads and had a pair of runners finish in the Top 35. Sophomore Amber Poniktera garnered All-Region accolades for the second consecutive fall as she placed 21st of 170 runners with a tome of 24:10 on the 6,000-meter course. Freshman Tara Smurla was four spots back in 25th in a time of 24:16 for All-Region honors.
"We're extremely proud of how both women raced this weekend," Baumann said. "Amber is a savvy racer and we knew those skills would be invaluable. The first mile of the course is notoriously hilly coupled with the mud from Hurricane Nicole passing through the day before, it altered how we needed to approach this meet. She has experience with Spartan Races, and that along with her toughness and grit could not have been more apt for what was needed on Saturday. She methodically picked her way through the field and made a huge move in the final mile of hills on the course to wrap up her best-ever regional finish.
"Tara was more assertive early on, which she needed to be in order to position herself for NCAAs," Baumann continued. She has beaten some of the women who ultimately qualified for NCAAs during the season, so it was the right strategy to place herself among them. She was in qualifying position through about 4k, but just didn't quite have it in her legs, which happens with any runner from time to time. Despite that, All-Region as a freshman is a remarkable accomplishment. Some of our best runners in recent years like Sarah Hughes, Natalie Stabilito, or Meg Brockett weren't able to achieve that until their junior/senior years, so Tara is set up well to get to some NCAA meets moving forward, like we know she can do."
View the full list of 2022 All-Region runners at https://www.ustfccca.org/2022/11/featured/2022-ncaa-division-iii-cross-country-all-region.
