The Geneseo women’s and men’s cross-country team are each off to flying starts this season.
The women have opened the season with four top two finishes, earning two second places and two first. The men are not far behind with three top twos to start the season. This record includes two first places and one second. Both programs plan to continue success from past seasons.
The women have competed hard all season. Their most recent meet on Saturday Sept. 22 at Roberts Wesleyan College resulted in a second-place finish. Sophomore Olivia Baumann led the team with a fifth-place finish. The Knights had five runners finish in the top 25 out of 243 competitors.
The team attributes much of their success to their training, especially junior runner McKenzie Angus.
“In terms of training, a lot of it is in the same conditions our races would be in,” Angus said. “We go into all of our meets really prepared for the course and for the intensity of it.”
The program has a history of success and has been SUNYAC champion every year since 2000. It is the Knights’ goal to keep the streak alive this year, a sentiment of cross-country member senior Dana Cebulski.
“Our goal is to win SUNYACs again because we have a streak going on,” Cebulski said. “We also want to go to Nationals and podium.”
The men’s team has also seen some early success in a year where many on the outside have more relaxed expectations for the program.
“I think a lot of people don’t expect a lot of us because we’re young and relatively inexperienced,” cross-country member junior Jack Tate said.
The Knights lost five senior runners who competed in Nationals last year, but the drop in expectations has only fueled the team this year.
“I’ve never seen a team want something this bad,” Tate said.
This hunger has produced solid results to start the season. In the team’s most recent meet at Roberts Wesleyan College on Saturday Sept. 22, the team finished second and Tate led the way with a first-place finish. Seven Geneseo runners placed within the top 25.
As the season progresses, the Knights will look to accomplish the lofty goals they have set for themselves. The team hopes to land a bid to Nationals and make some noise, according to Tate.
“Our goal is, once we get to Nationals, to really surprise some people,” Tate said.
Both the men’s and women’s teams will continue to train hard and hope to improve as the season goes on. The next meet for each team will be a home meet on Saturday Sept. 29 for the Mike Woods Invitational at Letchworth State Park. The women begin at 11 a.m. and the men follow at noon. The goal for each team will be to place high and hopefully win.
Look for the Knights to stay hungry as the SUNYAC Championships approach, set for Oct. 27 at SUNY Fredonia. It will be a chance for both teams to prove their worth and then, hopefully, move on to compete at Nationals.