By Jack McLoone
While Fordham’s cross country teams may run four races in Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx each season, only one bears their name. The Fordham Fiasco is a race featuring mostly local schools (though Florida Gulf Coast participated this year). The second name on the race, Ed Joyce, is in honor of a Fordham cross country and track assistant coach who passed away following a long battle with cancer in 2013.
Both the men’s and women’s teams finished towards the middle of the pack on Saturday, though both also had some standout finishes. The men finished in sixth (out of 12) and the women fourth (out of 13). For the most part, the Rams’ top runners—such as Ryan Kutch and Angelina Grebe—do not take part in the Fiasco, giving other runners a chance to shine.
The women’s team was paced by freshman Sarah Daniels, who finished her first-ever 5K in the Fordham maroon in 19:05.7, good for an 11th-place finish.
“I was really, nervous but I was happy with the result and gained valuable experience,” said Daniels.
Close behind Daniels was a woman on the other side of the spectrum, senior Laurel Fisher, who was running in her final Fiasco. She came in 16th with a time of 19:24.6.
The next two Rams to finish also followed a freshman-senior pattern, with freshman Bridget Alex coming in 21st (20:04.5) then senior Kelsey Coppinger at 24th (20:10.2). Rounding it out for the Rams were sophomore Maeve O’Connor (48th, 21:16.5), sophomore Bridget White (53rd, 21:29.2), senior Elizabeth Morriseau (56th, 21:39.4), senior Kieran Hanrahan (76th, 22:56.9) and sophomore Jessica Walker-Corbett (83rd, 23:30.0).
Scoring in cross country is measured by the top seven runners, whose aim is to get the lowest score. The Rams accumulated a score of 115, which left them just off the podium in fourth. Lipscomb finished in first with 25 points, as five of their seven runners finished in the top 10—including winner Courtney Brenner—and all seven within the top 20. Rounding out the top three were Princeton and crosstown rival Manhattan.
On the men’s side, the Rams’ top finisher was also a freshman who placed 11th in Brandon Hall. He finished his first Fordham 8K 26:37.8.
“Racing in the Fordham uniform was a really special experience,” said Hall. “My first time putting on that uniform was when I realized that I wasn’t in high school anymore and competitions would be different from here on out.”
And just like in the women’s race, another Ram finished in 16th. This time, however, it was a sophomore, Chris Strzelinski, who finished in 26:48.1.
The men’s side sent out more runners with than the women’s, with 15 Rams logging times. The next to finish was sophomore William Whelan (49th 28:18.8), followed by fellow sophomore Patrick Nokaro (55th, 28:29.1). Two Rams then finished back-to-back, with sophomore Thomas FitzPatrick placing 59th (28:39.0) and freshman Erik Larkin finishing 60th (28:39.9). A trio of Rams took the 67th through 69th place finishes: junior Jack Regan (28:50.9), sophomore Kieran Press-Reynolds (28:56.6) and junior Matthew Roma (28:56.9). Freshmen Jack O’Connell (74th, 29:20.6) and Patrick Tuohy (78th, 29:42.8) were the next two to finish. Another trio of Rams pulled in for the 80th through 82nd place finishes: Alberto Mena (29:53.15), junior Marc Guberti (29:54.1) and senior Jerome Vessichio (30:07.4). Rounding out the field for the Rams was sophomore Dylan Serino, who finished 85th with a time of 30:29.4.
The Rams top seven net them 261 points, placing them in sixth out of 12. Lipscomb once again dominated the field, with their own Silas Griffith coming in first, five of their top seven placing in the top 10, and none of their top seven finishing worse than 13th. Rounding out the top three were again Manhattan and then Florida Gulf Coast.
With the eagerness and optimism of a freshman, Hall believes this finish will help motivate the team.
“The team will continue to work hard, yet intelligently, in practice. We will all continue to work together and push each other to be the best we can be,” he said. “All of the coaches will have us ready to have peak performances in the meets that matter at the end of the season.”
The Rams will have a busy weekend starting on Friday, Sept. 14 with the Paddy Doyle Invitational. While also run at Van Cortlandt Park, this race is hosted by Iona. The following day, the Rams will travel to Old Westbury, New York, for the NYIT Invitational.
Daniels expects the Rams to do better when they run as a more cohesive unit.
“We were kind of separated a bit as some of the team raced at Fordham Fiasco and some the previous week at Stony Brook, so I think we will be even stronger when we are all able to run the same meet,” said Daniels.