XC men second to just one at Penn State
Buoyed by sophomore Steve Hallinan's seventh-place individual finish, The AU men's cross country team finished second out of 37 squads in this weekend's Penn State National Invite in State College, Pa.
Eastern Michigan won the event scoring 100 points, 30 lower than AU's second place mark in a system where the lowest score wins. Fellow Patriot League schools Lehigh and Bucknell finished 11th and 18th, respectively.
Hallinan completed the 8,000 meter course in 25:33, followed by AU junior Brendan Fennell in 25:55, good for 23rd place. Sophomore Awit Yohannes finished in 26:03 for 29th place individually, the leader of 5 AU runners who finished in the second 25.
Meanwhile, the women's team took 14th place in the event behind a seventh-place finish from senior Kiera Carlstrom, who completed 6,000 meters in 20:53. Senior Zaia Wharton was the next-highest AU finisher, getting 40th place in a time of 22:08.
In a field of 34, fellow PL school Bucknell bested AU, finishing 11th, while Lehigh was close behind the Eagles in 18th. Duke took first easily while sweeping the top three individual spots.
Swimming wins 7 at Potomac Relayz
The AU swimming and diving teams opened their season in successful fashion Saturday, taking seven first-place relay finishes at the District's Potomac Relays.
On the men's side, victories came in the 200 and 400 yard medley relays, and 300 yard backstroke and butterfly relays. Seniors Kevin Falkenstein and Val Fomenko, and junior Steve Brennan comprised the backstroke relay team, which thwarted its competition by over six seconds.
For the women, AU picked up wins in the 100 and 800 meter freestyle relays, and the 300 yard breaststroke relay.
Men's soccer still empty on the road
The AU men's soccer team is still winless on the road this season after losing, 4-1, at Holy Cross this Saturday. AU is now 2-2 in PL play, and 3-7-1 overall.
It was Holy Cross's (6-6, 1-3 PL) first win in league play this season.
The Crusaders scored thrice within the first 15 minutes to open up what proved an insurmountable lead. Josh Trott and Marsalis Beckford both scored twice; Trott in the 4th and 15th minutes, and Beckford in the 8th and 49th. Andreas Andrews assisted Beckford's first goal.
AU freshman striker Philip Purdy scored his first collegiate goal in the 48th minute off an assist from AU senior midfielder Coco Del Rio to make it 3-1, just a minute before Beckford's second goal.
Perhaps a result of persistent torrential rains throughout the Northeast, listed attendance for the match was a mere 87.
AU returns home for a Wednesday match with West Virginia at 3 p.m.
