The Blue Hens traveled to Bethlehem, PA to compete in the Paul Short Invitational today! Over 6,000 athletes showed up today, from nearly 450 schools. The Goodman Campus Cross Country Course–a historically fast course–was quite muddy, but that didn’t stop the team from putting down many PRs. Full results are available here.

For the women, Captain Emily Magoon ran the fastest time for the team once again. She crossed the line in 25:17, and the rest of the top 7 weren’t far behind at all. Senior Haley Reid came in 3 seconds after Magoon, in 25:20. Captain Elise LaFramboise was next, running 25:29. Freshman Ana Dacey was the next to finish, completing the race in 25:37. 3 seconds after her was Abby Kaye, who ran 25:40. Freshmen Talia Brookstein-Burke and Allison Einig rounded out the top 7, running times of 25:41 and 26:05, respectively. The time spread for the top 5 was just 23 seconds, which is the second-best for the whole field! The girl’s team showed great depth as they prepare for the championship season.

The men’s team, despite lacking the complete top 7, showed a strong performance as well. Vice President Brandon Holveck was first for the team, running 27:10. This puts him at 80th overall, which is the best individual placement for the team today. Captain Brandon Quanci, despite doctor’s orders, came in after Holveck in 27:41 for his first 8k of the season. Freshmen Nick Fafel and Paul Filipow finished next, in 28:09 and 29:22, respectively. The last to score was Captain Evan Driscoll, who ran 29:51. The top 7 was completed by Evan Massa and Ricky Farrell, who ran 30:03 and 30:06, respectively. All but 2 of our top 5 ran personal bests today!

This was a promising day for the Blue Hens! The women’s team, as well as the majority of the men’s team, will be running on our home course for the Blue & Gold Invitational on October 6th. For the top 7 men, they will be racing in the Princeton Invitational on October 12th. As this is an elite meet, we are only sending our top runners–the top 6 from today, as well as Mike Durkin, are expected to compete. Great job to all who ran today! With photography from Mike Durkin and Forde Hansell, pictures are below: