CHICAGO – Both the Loyola University Maryland men's and women's cross country teams competed at the 41
st Loyola Lakefront Invitational, hosted by Loyola of Chicago, on Saturday. One of the most prestigious meets in the country, the event attracted 26 universities and colleges.
In the men's race, the Greyhounds placed 24
th out of 26 schools in a field that included the likes of Nebraska, Arizona, Ohio State, Texas A&M, DePaul and Missouri. Grand Valley State, last year's NCAA Division II runner-up, won the meet with 59 points, followed by McMaster and Nebraska.
For the Greyhounds, freshman
Patrick Cropsey led the way, finishing 128
th with a time of 26:17. Freshman
Jake Fowler placed 142
nd with a time of 26:43. Sophomore
Brandon Rossi took 152
nd with a time of 27:17, and senior Alexander Buchholz was close behind, finishing 159
th (27:55). Freshman
Ethan Bassett ran the race in a time of 27:59. Senior
Tyler Schoch (27:59) and freshman
Spencer Askine (28:01) rounded out the Greyhounds' contingent.
Led by junior
Kayleigh Caggiano, the women's team took 22
nd place in the 30-team field. Caggiano led the Loyola runners for the first time this season by taking 102
nd place with a time of 18:55. Senior
Christina Daniels also ran a strong race as she finished in 113
th place with a time of 19:04.
Another senior,
Mary Sutton, turned in a 116
th place finish with a time of 19:06. Freshman
Grayce Heinemann was right behind Sutton as she ran 122
nd with a time of 19:08. Finishing with a time of 19:21, junior
Audrey O'Neill took 137
th place. Sophomore
Tara Ryan (19:33) and senior
Gabrielle Silvestri (19:36) rounded out the Greyhounds' contingent in the women's race.
Princeton won the women's race with 65 points, edging Grand Valley State for the women's title. Ohio State was third, followed by Illinois, Missouri, Washington University and Arizona.
With 590 points, the Loyola women's team finished ahead of Southern Illinois-Edwardsville, DePaul, Windsor, and Albion.
The Loyola men's team returns to action on Saturday, October 13 when they run in the Lafayette Invitational. The women's squad will compete in the Penn State Invitational on Friday, October 12.
