Oct. 26, 2004

The first two of 21 Atlantic 10 team champions will be crowned on Saturday, Oct. 30 with the running of the Atlantic 10 Men's and Women's Cross Country Championships at Schenley Park in Pittsburgh, PA.

The 16th running of the Women's Cross Country Championship will begin at 10:00am. Richmond claimed its first-ever title in 2003, outdistancing runner-up Rhode Island, 29-64. Leading the Spiders is sophomore Amanda Russell, a four-time A-10 Performer of the Week selection this season who finished eighth overall at the 2003 Championship with a time of 18:43.3 en route to earning All-Atlantic 10 honors. Also returning from last season's All-Conference team, which consists of the top 10 overall finishers, are UR teammates Nicole Kurtain (fourth) and Caitlin Smyth (fifth), as well as La Salle's Jenna Darcy (sixth), Elizabeth Graham (seventh) of Duquesne and Saint Joseph's Colleen Flanagan (10th). Joining Richmond and Rhode Island in the Championship are Dayton, Duquesne, Fordham, George Washington, La Salle, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Richmond, St. Bonaventure, Saint Joseph's, and Xavier. The race is 5,000 meters.

The 27th annual Men's Cross Country Championship will begin at 10:45am on Schenley Park's 8,000-meter course. La Salle won its third consecutive title last season and seeks to join Penn State (1986-90) as the only programs to win four consecutive A-10 cross country titles. The top four overall finishers from last year's field are back, including 2003 champion Andre Laboy of Saint Joseph's. The Danbury, CT resident posted a time of 24:46.7 a year ago and seeks to become the sixth runner in Conference annals to defend his individual title. Challenging Laboy for the title will be Duquesne's Ryan Bender (second), as well as Tim Carroll (third), Ryan Fennelly (fourth), Sean Quigley (eighth) and John Butler (ninth) of La Salle, all members of the 2003 All-Conference team. Dayton, Duquesne, Fordham, George Washington, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Richmond, St. Bonaventure, Saint Joseph's, and Xavier will look to seize the title away from the Explorers.

The Atlantic 10 Men's and Women's Cross Country Championships are the first two of 21 championships to be held this year - six of which will take place in the fall. The University of Massachusetts will be the site of the Atlantic 10 Women's Soccer (Nov. 4-7) and Field Hockey (5-6) Championships, while the Men's Soccer Championship will be held Nov. 11-14 at the Athletic Complex at Mount Vernon, hosted by George Washington. The final A-10 championship of the fall sports season will be the Women's Volleyball Championship Nov. 19-20 on the campus of Duquesne.

For more information go to Atlantic 10 Cross Country Site