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COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – The Ursinus College cross country teams are looking to peak at the right time as they head to Haverford for the Centennial Conference championship on Saturday. Both squads have shown steady improvement over the course of the fall and hope their progress is evident against a loaded conference field.
On the men's side, Haverford is the heavy favorite to claim its 21st title in 24 years of the championship meet. The Fords, ranked 15th in Division III, have only seen their dominance curtailed by Dickinson (2008-09) and Johns Hopkins (2013) since the championship's inception, and the Blue Jays (No. 30 nationally) and Dickinson appear to be the top challengers this time around.
Ursinus will bring 11 runners to Haverford's Alumni Cross Country Course, a contingent headlined by junior Joseph Iuliucci, who was one of four Bears to post a time south of 27 minutes at Rowan's Inter-Regional Border Battle two weeks ago. Iuliucci (26:12.5) and a trio of freshmen – John Haase (26:23.6), James McDaid (26:45.9), and Logan Mazullo (26:50.9) – all cracked a barrier that no Ursinus runner had reached in three years. Iuliucci has been the Bears' top finisher at each of the four meets this season, with freshman Craig Lauer (PR of 27:33) crossing the line second in three of them.
The Bears have received steady contributions from each of those four rookies, all of whom have comprised the team's top five finishers in at least three races.
Sophomores Andrew Voyack (27:41.4) and Jonny Cope (28:26.7) were two of the six Ursinus harriers to produce a collegiate best at Rowan, and classmate Evan Cirafesi (28:32.57) was the fourth Bear across the line at the season-opening Salisbury Invitational.
Senior Dylan Ammons, junior Mitchell Kelly, and freshman Andre Kelly will also compete for the Bears, who are looking to finish higher than eighth for the first time.
For the women, eight-time defending champion Johns Hopkins – the top-ranked program in Division III – is favored to take home another crown, with Dickinson (2000-07 CC champions) right on its heels.
The Bears have had the same top five all fall. Sophomore Brittany Gasser, with a top time of 23:39, has paced the pack at all three of the meets in which she competed, with classmate Riley Engel (PR of 24:40.25) in second for two of them and junior Jenna Kelly (24:38.4) taking that mantle at the Inter-Regional Border Battle. Freshman Alyson Manley (25:10.73) and sophomore Gabrielle Manto (25:05.99) have occupied the fourth and fifth spots at all three races in which Ursinus was at full strength.
Seniors Alicia Baker and Sam Innes and freshman Ellie Stanley will also join the Bears' pack on Saturday. Ursinus, which finished ninth last season, turned in its best showing (6th) at the CC championship in 2007.
The women's race will begin at 11:00 a.m. Saturday, with the men's to follow at noon. The finish of both races will be streamed live via CentennialConference.TV and live results will be available through Motion Timing. Links are available at the top of this page and on the cross country schedule pages. Fans are encouraged to follow @CentennialConf on Twitter and Instagram for meet day coverage, which will include expanded segments courtesy of Facebook Live. The CC has also created a digital race program, which is available at the top of this page.