2016 Cross Country Season at a Glance

2016 Cross Country Season at a Glance

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

PHILADELPHIA - The 2016 Cross Country Schedule has been released, and the Owls are set to commence competition on Sept. 3. The program is under the direction of James Snyder, who has been named the head coach of the men's and women's cross country teams in the offseason. Snyder led both squads for the past four years under the title of assistant coach/distance coach.

This season, the Owls will participate in six meets before the American Athletic Conference Championship on Oct. 29. This year's conference championship will be hosted by the University of Cincinnati.

On Sept. 3, cross country will head to the Duquesne Duals in Pittsburgh, Pa., for the first meet of the season. Immediately following, the Owls have five days to gear up for the annual Big 5 Invitational on Sept. 9, a 4k competition between the five schools in Philadelphia (Penn, LaSalle, St. Joseph's, Villanova, and Temple).

"The Big 5 is a fun way to kick things off," Snyder comments. "We have a really neat running community in the city. Although we might see some of the schools running out on the trails it is great to see everyone together." Every year, Temple hosts the Big 5 at Belmont Plateau in West Fairmount Park.

The next meet for the Owls will be the Rider Invitational on Sept. 16 at Rider University before a two-week break leading up to the Paul Short Run on Oct. 1. Unanimously, the Paul Short is the most anticipated meet for the teams. "It's at the point in the season where we get into the groove of things," says sophomore Ashton Dunkley. "Because of the great competition," senior Megan Schneider adds, "we get to put ourselves in the perspective of how we will be feeling during our conference and our regional meet later down the line." In its first taste of big-time competition of the season, cross country will be amongst a field of over 300 runners at that meet.

Next up on Temple's schedule is the Jack St. Clair Invite, another meet hosted at the Belmont Plateau in Philadelphia on Oct. 8. About a week later, the Owls will head to Lafayette University for the Leopard Invitational. The course in Easton, Pa., runs similarly to the regional course and mimics the AAC Championship, giving both squads a good feel for what's to come.

"Our most important meet of the season is the American Athletic Conference Championship," Coach Snyder explains. "We don't get dual meet matchups like the basketball teams do. We meet all the teams in the American once in one weekend. All season, we're gearing up to run our best at the conference meet."

NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships are scheduled for Nov. 11. Soon following, the ECAC/IC4A Championships are set for Nov. 19, as are the NCAA Championships for qualifying runners. The ECAC/IC4A Championships will be held at Van Cortlandt Park in Bronx, N.Y., while the NCAA Championships will be hosted by Indiana State University.

Men's cross country will enter the 2016 season ranked No. 15 in the Mid-Atlantic region by the USTFCCCA. The Owls return five runners in sophomores Jonathan Condly, Ben Evans, David Fitzgerald, Tyji Mays, and Shane Ramdeo. With seven newcomers including graduate student Marc Steinsberger from Germany, between veterans and young talent, men's cross country is in good shape.

Since last season, Temple has graduated its top three runners, Matt Kacyon, Alex Izewski, and Stephan Listabarth. Kacyon, the Owls' No.1 led the team to achieving its highest ever finish at the American Athletic Conference Championship. At the AAC, Kacyon ran a personal best. Izewski also ran a personal best as the pair helped the Owls reach the fourth place finish. The two closed out their careers as Owls at the IC4A Championships, finishing in the top 40.

Men's cross country's newcomers include seven freshman (Dylan Bucior, Kevin Lapsansky, Donovan Mears, Ben Ryherd, Zach Seiger, and Justin Yurchak) and graduate student Steinsberger. The group is made up of league champions, all-state medalists and honorees, and conference champions that are expected to have an immediate impact.

In the spring, Temple graduated Blanca Fernandez, the team's No. 1 runner for the 2015 season. The Leon, Spain native was undefeated in six cross country meets including her wins at the American Athletic Conference Championship and the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regionals. Fernandez was the program's first ever conference champion. At the end of the season, she represented the Owls at the NCAA Championships, earning All-America honors with her 29-place finish.

Coach Snyder is optimistic about this coming season without Fernandez. "Women's cross country is going to be better than ever, collectively," he said. "You don't replace your number one overnight and you don't do it with just one person. It is a team effort." He expects his returners to step up and is confident in the talents of his young runners. Seasoned runner Katie Pinson, returning for her junior year, was Temple's number two and has the potential to lead the team. Emily Nist, a senior transfer from Syracuse, adds depth and experience to the roster along with sophomore Katie Leisher. Newcomers like Millie Howard, Caitlin O'Brien, Grace Moore, and Brianna Thomas round out the young talent. The group includes school record holders, all-state honorees, and county champions.