Cross country teams from 14 schools will convene on the campus of SUNY Oswego on Saturday, September 13 to compete in the 18th annual Oswego State Cross Country Invitational. For the second straight year, the meet will be run on the Hidden Athletic Fields, accessible off of Iroquois Trail on the Oswego campus.

     The day begins at 10:00 a.m. with the alumni and open race, followed by the Pat Peterson women’s 4.5 kilometer race at 11:00 a.m., and concluding with the Don Masterson 6 kilometer race at noon.  Entry fee for the open and alumni race is $10 and can be paid at the 9:00 a.m. registration the day of the meet by cash or check (made out to Oswego State Cross Country).

     Among the participating teams, in addition to the host Lakers, are Alfred University, Clarkson University, SUNY Cortland, Herkimer Community College, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Houghton College, Ithaca College, Keuka College, LeMoyne College, Morrisville State, Utica College, and Wells College.

     In last year’s race, nationally ranked SUNY Geneseo dominated in capturing the men’s and women’s team titles. The Knights held off Ithaca College in the women’s race, 18-50, taking the first three place and placing all of their scoring runners among the top ten.  Geneseo won the men’s title handily with 23 points, with all five scoring runners finishing in the top seven, including the individual champion.

     The highlight of this year’s field is the appearance of SUNY Cortland, whose men’s team comes into the season as the top ranked squad in NCAA Division III by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).  The Red Dragons return all seven runners, including All-American juniors Seth DuBois (19th place) and Justin Wager (37th place), from a team that finished third at the NCAA Division III Championships in Northfield, MN last fall, their best finish in school history.

     Among the top returning individual finishers are Daniel Ballard (runner-up) and Chad Stauring (11th place) of Houghton, Jake McAndrew of LeMoyne, Ben Flanagan (13th) of Hobart, and Danny George (15th) of Ithaca.

     On the women’s side, Ithaca, the top team in the New York State Collegiate Track Conference (NYSCTC) rankings and ranked 11th in the latest USTFCCCA Division III national poll, returns five of its top six runners from last year’s runner-up squad, including Lindsey Nadolski (fourth), Melanie McCormick (sixth),  Casey Currier (11th), Amanda Boccio (18th), and Alissa Kersey (19th).  Other top 20 finishers from a year ago include McKenzie Clemens (tenth) of Alfred, and Houghton’s Kaitlin Fadden (12th).

     Junior Rose Foran (41st place) and senior Renee Coe (43rd) are the top returning female finishers for the host Lakers, who finished fifth of 11 teams last year.  Junior Cody Netzband (86th) and senior Joe Merrihew (97th) are the top returning finishers for the Oswego men, who finished fourth of 13 teams.