The Stony Brook men’s and women’s cross country teams are hungry to defend their America East (AE) championship crowns.
Each team appeared at No. 12 in the most recent NCAA Division I Cross Country Northeast Region U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) preseason rankings. The women, who are no stranger to success, aim to collect their seventh-straight title, while the men are vying to make a little noise of their own with the quest towards their second-straight AE championship in program history.
On the women’s side, the Seawolves return three runners who placed top-10, including seniors Olivia Burne (4th) and Lorraine McCarthy (7th), and sophomore Christina Melian (9th). To assist the nine returning runners, Coach Andy Ronan and his team welcome a class of eight freshmen to continue the winning tradition.
The men return the 2012 individual champion, junior Eric Speakman, who topped all runners with an 8k time of 25:11.43, 10.74 seconds ahead of his closest competitor. Speakman has been a leader of the pack since his rookie year in 2011, in which he finished third in the AE championship to earn a spot at No. 16 in the Top-20 Championship Times. Speakman is joined by fellow runner senior Dan Dennis, who finished 5th in last year’s meet. The duo is accompanied by 16 other cross country veterans who are eager to repeat the 2012 season.
This weekend kicks off with a Pre-Conference meet at Binghamton on Saturday, September 7th, in which several AE teams will compete. The Bearcats are also slated to host the 2013 AE Conference Championship on Saturday, November 2nd.