Cross Country Looks to Continue its Success After Strong Start
Leopards place third and second in their first two meets and with a strong mix of returners and freshmen look to make a run at the conference title
BOSTON, Mass. – Two weeks ago, the Wentworth Institute of Technology men's cross country team entered the University of New England Invitational without its top runner – sophomore Dan McSolla (Bridgewater, Mass.) – and a quartet of freshmen that had never raced an eight-kilometer course.
The pre-race concerns facing the Leopards were quickly erased once the meet commenced as Wentworth collaborated for a program-best second place performance out of 15 teams, placing five runners in the top-30 and tallying a team score of 87 points.
"Our runners knew they'd have to race well and be mentally tough," said head coach Matt Moyen '06. "They did exactly that, leading us to a second place finish, including two top ten individual finishers."
Sophomores Alex Robbins (Mansfield, Mass.) and Patrick Hopkins (Lansdale, Pa.) highlighted Wentworth's effort with a sixth and 10th place performance, respectively, while senior Kyle Schwartz (South Windsor, Conn.) finished 21st, freshman Jonah Eisman (New York, N.Y.) placed 22nd and classmate Josh Gangemi (Norton, Mass.) completed the course 29th out of 162 runners.
This week, the Leopards travel to Gordon College to compete in the Pop Crowell Invitational on Saturday, September 26, and Moyen is optimistic that his team's early season success will continue.
"We'll be looking to carry this momentum (into the meet) and continue our runners' growth," said Moyen.
Continuing the 'runners growth' will be key for the Leopards as the second year program looks to build on an impressive first year that saw Wentworth place second at the Commonwealth Coast Conference Championship, eighth at the Eastern College Athletic Conference Championship and 17th at the NCAA Regionals.
"Our guys were extremely motivated going into the offseason and put in the required work over the summer to build upon last year's success this fall," said Moyen. "I'm a big believer in goal setting and as a program we are constantly setting new individual and team goals. It's an essential ingredient to our programs recipe for (future) success."
Wentworth's impressive first season intrigued four freshmen runners – Eisman, Gangemi, Chris Kaberle (Pelham, N.H.) and Nathan Ouellette (Wells, Maine) – to join the program and Moyen is impressed with their progress thus far.
"Our four freshmen have transitioned over to college cross country very well. Each of them put in a great deal of work over the summer and because of that I anticipate they will all continue to have a great deal of success this year and into the future as a part of our program," said Moyen.
With early season success and the commitment to program, Moyen is confident that the Leopards will improve week by week and year by year. And with six races remaining, including this weekend's meet at Gordon, the Leopards are focused on establishing trust, dedication and commitment – three key objectives that will assist in producing a successful program for many years.
"We've been on a great ride as a program since its inception and I believe our family mentality - one that has a foundation in trust, dedication and a commitment to achieving a common goal has and will continue to strengthen our teams bond this fall and into the future," said Moyen.