By Bryan Kiel
Fordham cross country had finished one of its most successful weeks on Saturday. The Rams started off the week with the first championship meet of the season, the Metropolitan Championship at Van Cortlandt Park on Oct. 10. Top runners from both the men’s and women’s squad competed at Van Cortlandt and culminated in a victory for the men and a second-place finish for the women.
“I am so proud of what the team did today,” head coach Tom Dewey said. “It was just a great performance. Today showed just how deep this team is, and it was an outstanding performance to start off the championship part of our season.”
Senior Brianna Tevnan led the women and finished second overall in the five-kilometer race with a time of 18:28. Though Rutgers won the race, five other Fordham runners joined Tevnan in the top 25, including fellow seniors Mara Lieberman, and Sarah Glockenmeier, sophomores Ariana Bottalico and Brianne Roche, and freshman Brynna Harum. Freshmen Shea Williams and Stephanie Leo joined Harum as top 40 finishers.
Senior captain Melissa Higgins, who also competed in the Metropolitan Championship and took 30th overall, was very proud of how the team stepped up as a pack. “We have a team of very talented girls who all bring something different to the table,” she said. “Our freshmen have stepped up immensely this season. Brynna, Shea, and Steph are a great addition to our travel team.”
Junior Quincy O’Connor led the men’s pack by more than 20 seconds with a time of 25:51 in the eight-kilometer race. Fellow junior Mike Turi came in second with a time of 26:12, while Fordham freshman Thomas Slattery rounded out the top three for the race with a time of 26:15. Both O’Connor and Slattery were recognized for their efforts when the A-10 named them men’s Cross Country Performer of the Week and Rookie of the Week, respectively.
O’Connor was the first Fordham runner in three years to win the Metropolitan Championship, following in the steps of former standout Julian Saad.
- Quincy O’Connor was a star performer for the Rams at the Metropolitan Championship. Courtesy of Shanna Heaney
It was also the first time since 1964 that the team won the Metropolitan Championship. These feats were recognized by the US Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), who named O’Connor a Division I National Athlete of the Week.
“We knew we had a pack and could run together for most of the race and that’s what we did,” said O’Connor. “The Met’s is a big deal for us. We just wanted to come out here, start the championship season right, and take this to [the Atlantic 10 Championship].”
With Fordham’s top runners taking a few weeks off to prepare for the Atlantic 10 Championship on Nov. 1, the rest of the squad competed at Princeton this past Saturday against a number of teams across the Northeast.
The Rams finished 13th in the women’s competition and 10th in the men’s, with senior Jillian Brooks and sophomore Devin Rocks leading both squads.
Brooks finished the six-kilometer meet 29th overall with a time of 24:08, leading three other Fordham women in the top 100. This included freshman Anna Richard in 74th place, senior Danielle Drummond in 79th, and junior Danielle Rowe in 85th. Sophomore Devin Rocks placed 25th overall in the five-mile meet with a time of 26:19, followed by junior Yehia Fahmy in 48th, sophomore Adam Schwenzfeier in 57th, freshman Fritz Heinrich in 66th and senior William Slattery in 88th.
In preparation for the conference championship on Nov. 1, Fordham will seek to add more team victories to the three already accumulated this season