Cross Country Teams Ranked Nationally
Men Are Preseason #5, Women #19
Juniors Paige Zelinksy (left) and Andrew Zitek are expected to be major contributors for the women's and men's squads, respectively.
9/2/2010 11:16:51 AM
The New York University men’s and women’s cross country teams are both ranked in the
United States Track & Field Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Division III preseason national poll.
The four-time defending University Athletic Association (UAA) champion men are fifth in the national rankings, while the women are tied for 19th.
The men finished fourth at the NCAA Championship last season – their third top-four finish in the last four years. The Violets were ranked as high as seventh in Division III last season and return three of their top seven runners, including senior All-American
Sebastian Schwelm (30th at NCAA’s) and classmate
Matt Turlip (38th).
The women open the season in the national rankings after qualifying for the NCAA Championship for the first time last year. They finished 24th at NCAA’s and were ranked as high as 20th in Division III. The Violets return six of their top eight runners, including junior
Maeve Evans (127th at NCAA’s) and sophomore
Kirsten Keller (141st), from the most successful squad in program history.
The men are ranked first in the Atlantic Region, while the women are third. Both squads kick off the 2010 season on Saturday at the Monmouth Season Opener in Lincroft, NJ, beginning at 9:00 am.