XC Championships to be Run at Saratoga State Park Nov. 1

XC Championships to be Run at Saratoga State Park Nov. 1

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Women's 5K course map 

Men's 8K course map

Finish Right Timing Website 

Directions to Course 

Previous E8 Champions: Women | Men


Saratoga Springs will host some of the best distance runners this weekend as the Empire 8 Athletic Conference men’s and women’s cross country championships take place on Saturday November 1, beginning at 10:45 a.m. with the 5k women’s race followed by the 8k men’s race at 11:30 am. Eight men’s teams and nine women’s teams will take on the course laid out over Saratoga Spa State Park with the goal of hoisting the Empire 8 Championship plaque in triumph.
 
WOMEN
The Ithaca women are looking to defend the team title. The Bombers tallied just 29 points in 2013 to remain the only school to win the title since the conference began sponsoring the sport in 2003.
 
A Bomber student-athlete won the individual championship from 2003-2011, but the last two years Stevens’ Amy Regan has taken top honors. Regan set a new conference meet record last year (17:29.0) as she finished 26 second ahead of the rest of the pack.
 
Regan returns as the favorite in 2014 and should she win, she will become the first E8 athlete to win three straight titles. Last year she became just the third athlete to win back-to-back titles, joining Rachel Blasiak (2005 & 2006) and Lindsey Nadolski (2007 & 2008).
 
Regan has won each race she has competed in this fall, and bested the field of competitors by close to a minute or more on four different occasions. Sophomore Kathleen Kalbian (17th in 2013) and junior Katie Moyer (12th) have been the other top runners for the Ducks this season.
 
Ithaca senior Alexa Rick, 2011 Rookie of the Year, returns after a second place individual finish in 2012 and 2013 and is expected to be back at the front of the pack.
 
The Bombers also return five more top 15 finishers from 2013 in Hannah Wright (5), Carolyn Malone (7), Meghan Cass (9), Rachelle Sartori (13) and Anna Fay (15).
 
Utica junior Ashton Villeneueve will challenge Regan for top honors. Villeneueve placed fourth a year ago (18:18.5) and should be found near the front with Regan and Rick.
 
Junior Gabrielle LeBihan returns to lead Nazareth after a third place individual finish in 2013 and will be joined by Emily Thompson, who finished 20th a year ago.
 
St. John Fisher is in its fourth year of competition as a varsity sport is looking to move up in the team standings. Sophomore Samantha VanGee has been the lead runner for the Cardinals all season and could find herself in the mix of all-conference honors.
 
Alfred’s Mary Baughman and Hartwick’s Monica Prager are two additional runners to watch for in the women’s race. Baughman finished 18th  last year and has steadily improved this season including an eighth place finish at the NYSCTC last weekend.  Prager earned second-team all-conference honors last year with an 11th place finish and will be looking to earn another honor.
 
Houghton returns to the course for the third year in Empire 8 and will rely on sophomore Joanna Friesen and senior Cara Davenport to lead the way.
 
Elmira will compete in its first E8 championships after starting the women’s program this fall. The Soaring Eagles have been led by freshman Hannah Lundgren and sophomore Julia Ashey all season and will see where they stack up among the rest of the field.
 
MEN
On the men’s side the top 15 could have a similar look to a year ago, as only four runners are not returning including the top two which means the podium is open for a new individual champion.
 
Ithaca has five returners who placed in the top 20 last year and are favored to repeat as Empire 8 champions and earn their fifth straight title and eighth overall. An Ithaca student-athlete has claimed the individual title on five occasions (2003, 2004, 2008, 2010, 2012) and it appears that 2014 could mark the sixth time.
 
Junior Sawyer Hitchcock, the 2012 Rookie of the Year, and senior Dennis Ryan will pace the Bombers along with sophomore Sean Phillips, 2013 Rookie of the Year.
 
Hitchcock finished 17th a year ago but has had a standout 2014 campaign where he has been named the E8 Runner of the Week four times and is coming off a runner-up finish at the New York State Collegiate Track Conference (NYSCTC) Championship.
 
Ryan and Phillips placed third and fourth, respectively, a year ago at the E8 Championship and will be looking to return to the top five and maybe even make it a 1-2-3 sweep for the Bombers.
 
Senior Tom Cunningham returns as a three-time all-conference honoree for Stevens after a 10th place finish last year. Sophomore Nicholas Zickgraf and freshman Greg Arabagian have led the Ducks along with Cunningham all season and will be looking to guide Stevens to a top-3 team finish.
 
Utica ran to its best-finish (second-place) in school-history at the 2013 E8 Championships and has a chance to repeat the showing. Sophomore Josh Lee and junior Kyle Cairns placed 12th and 13th, respectively, and will be looking for their second-straight all-conference honor.
 
Houghton junior Timothy McGowan is a two-time all-conference honoree, placing ninth in 2012 and eighth in 2013, and will be looking to repeat his performance.
 
Hartwick senior Gavin Jenkins, St. John Fisher senior Evan Magnussen and Alfred sophomore Kevin Dixon have each been the constant leader for their respective teams all fall.
 
Jenkins placed fifth a year ago, six seconds behind the runner-up, and could definitely find himself in the lead pack once again. Magnussen is hoping to improve on his 15th place finish and possibly break into the top-10, while Dixon would like to make a big move up from  his 26th place finish.
 
Nazareth features five returners to the championship course from a year ago. But all eyes will be on freshman Kevin Witt, who has been the lead Golden Flyer since the season started. His best 8K time of the year (27:31) would have placed him 26th a year ago, so we will see if he gets any rookie nerves. 
  
Please continue to check the Finish Right Timing Website for official results and the Empire 8 website for complete championship. And become a fan on twitter @Empire8  and Instagram http://instagram.com/empire8 for race day updates and photos.