Despite resting several of the team's top runners on Saturday, the Case Western Reserve University men's and women's cross country teams each rose to the top of the standings to win the Daniel Mullen Memorial Invitational, hosted by Muskingum College at the Moorehead Farm in New Concord, Ohio.

Men's Race

• The CWRU men dominated the field on Saturday, placing five runners inside the top-10 and 10 inside the top-20. The Spartans finished the meet with a score of 28 points to best second-place California (Pa.) (61 points) and the third-place West Virginia Track Club (88 points). Wooster (109 points) and Allegheny (125 points) rounded out the top five teams, with host Muskingum (140 points) and Franciscan (209) also finishing on Saturday.

• The Spartans were paced by a strong showing from two of their first-year runners. Kian Schneeweis placed third out of 87 total finishers in the men's 8K race with a time of 28:05.3 and was followed closely by fellow first-year Jay Woodhouse in fourth place with a mark of 28:06.9.

• A tight pack of three completed the group of Spartan scorers, with graduate student Michael Lombardi placing sixth in a time of 28:13.0, first-year Jacob Porter seventh in a time of 28:19.7, and senior Solomon Greene eighth in a time of 28:33.4.

• Two spots later, another group of three Spartans crossed the line in close succession, with first-years Tyler Ginther (11th, 28:45.2), Caleb Guarino (12th, 28:48.9), and Devin Montileone (13th, 28:53.6) finishing back-to-back-to-back to secure the team win for CWRU.

• Also in action for the Spartan men on Saturday were sophomore Adam Joseph (17th, 29:12.5), first-year Thijs Doot (19th, 29:17.5), sophomore Will Larson (22nd, 29:24.6), senior Matias Facchinato-Sitja (23rd, 29:49.5), first-year Lowell Copps (25th, 29:54.8), sophomore Paul Salah (31st, 30:24.0), senior Nathan Webb (34th, 30:43.7), first-year Chance Krenzer (36th, 30:44.2), first-year Austin Schneidler (48th, 31:59.0), and sophomore Eli Stodard (54th, 32:50.4). 

• California senior Jonathan Thrush won the men's race with a time of 27:23.2.

Women's Race

• The women were equally dominant on Saturday, placing three of their seven runners in the top-five, five in the top-10, and six in the top-15. CWRU finished with a score of 22 points, finishing ahead of Allegheny (65 points), Muskingum (85 points), California (Pa.) (98 points), Franciscan (117 points), and the West Virginia Track Club (128 points).

• First-year Francesca Taracila recorded her third-straight strong performance to start her career, placing second out of 60 runners in the women's 6K with a time of 23:24.0

• First-year Aditi Mukundhan led a tight group of three CWRU runners, placing fourth with a time of 23:32.2. Finishing right behind her were sophomore Cecilia Postma in fifth place with a time of 24:43.3 and first-year Reid Smith in sixth place with a time of 24:45.7. 

• Sophomore Becca Liaw completed the team's top five finishers with a ninth-place finish in a time of 25:08.4, while first-years Maya DiPasquale (15th, 26:50.9) and Hannah Nevius (30th, 28:21.7) completed the team's top-seven placers on Saturday.

• California junior Rosalyn Perozzi won the women's 6K race with a time of 23:18.6. 

Spartan Notes

• After being ranked 26th in the last USTFCCCA poll, the team's highest national ranking this season, the Spartan men fell one spot to 27th after being idle last week. The CWRU men are also ranked second in the Great Lakes Region, while the women are ranked fifth in the region.

• It was the first time this season that both Schneeweis and Taracila have been the team's top runners in a race.

• Salah recorded a season-best 8K time while Guarino notched a career-best mark at the distance for the Spartans on Saturday. Smith recorded her career-best time in the 6K at the event.

• This was the first time the Spartans had competed at the Daniel Mullen Memorial Invitational.

Up Next

The Spartans will be back in action in two weeks when the team travels to nearby Oberlin, Ohio, for the Inter-Regional Rumble on Saturday, October 18.