Heavy Competition Awaits Temple Cross Country at American Athletic Conference Championship

Saturday, October 29

Cincinnati, Ohio (University of Cincinnati)

12:00 p.m.

Temple University

American Athletic Conference Championships

Heavy Competition Awaits Temple Cross Country at American Athletic Conference Championship

10.28.16 | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country

PHILADELPHIA – On Saturday, Oct. 29, Temple' s men's and women's cross country teams will take on fellow American Athletic Conference schools at the Voice of America Metropark in West Chester Township, Ohio.

The American Athletic Conference Cross Country Championship kicks off with the women's 6K race on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. followed by the men's 8K race at 10:40 a.m. Both races will be streamed live on the American Digital Network.

The women's 6k race will feature five teams (SMU, Tulsa, Tulane, Houston, and Memphis) ranked in the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) regional and national rankings. The men's 8k will include four teams (Tulsa, Cincinnati, UConn, Temple) regionally and nationally ranked by the USTFCCCA.

Temple men's cross country will enter the American Championship ranked 15th in the Mid-Atlantic region by the USTFCCCA. Last year, the squad took a fourth-place finish out of nine teams at the conference championship. Despite losing four of the team's top runners, head coach James Snyder does not believe that 2016 will be a year of regression for the Owls.

"We are a young and relatively inexperienced team," said Snyder. "We are only going to get better. However, I've told the team that youth cannot be a crutch or an excuse. This year is not the year to take a step back; we are a team capable of meeting or exceeding our previous successes."

Snyder predicts a leading pack comprised of eight to 10 runners from Tulsa, UConn, Tulane, and Cincinnati. Graduate Student Marc Steinsberger, who has been a leading scorer for Temple this season winning two individual titles, is not out-classed among the competition. He has already met three of Tulsa's runners in last year's European Cross Country Championship, giving him familiarity with the high caliber contenders Temple will face at the conference championship.

The Temple squad competing on Saturday will be made up of Steinsberger, Johnathan Condly, Tyji Mays, David Fitzgerald, Kevin Lapsansky, Donovan Mears, Zach Seiger, and Justin Yurchak.

"John is our only returning scorer from a year ago," explains Snyder. "I am looking for him to step up this year. Although Zach and Kevin will be competing for their first conference championship, we are definitely going to rely on them. I have a lot of confidence in their ability to step up and do something special for our team on Saturday. We are going to be aggressive."

Women's cross country will be entering the American Championship coming off of its only team win of the season at the Leopard Invitational. Returning to the race is Junior Katie Pinson who placed 25th in last year's championship. Along with Pinson, Snyder will run Katie Leisher, Grace Moore, Millie Howard, Megan Schneider, Emily Nist, and Ashton Dunkley. Moore, who earned an individual title at the Leopard Invitational, Leisher, and Howard will likely be the Owls' leading scorers on Saturday.

"We have had a clearly defined top three all season in Katie, Grace, and Millie," said Snyder. "I believe that the three of them all have the opportunity on Saturday to receive all-conference consideration."

More specifically, Snyder is expecting a great race from Leisher.

"For Katie, our plan is for her to go out and run with the leaders," he said. "I am very excited about her race because she has been training phenomenally all year."