Temple University Athletics
Women's Cross Country Set to Begin 2018 Season
8.29.18 | Women's Cross Country
PHILADELPHIA – The Temple University women's cross country squad looks to top their record-breaking 2017 season as they return to the course this Friday, August 31st. The Owls will start the season ranked No. 9 in the Mid-Atlantic region by the USTFCCCA, four spots higher than they started the 2017 season.
Last year was a break-through year for the women's cross country squad. The Owls started the season with a first place finish at both the Temple Invitational and the Rider Invitational. Later in the season at the American Athletic Conference Championships, Temple finished a program high third while placing two athletes on the All-Conference team.
At the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional, the Owls set another program record when they finished 10th out of 28 teams, three spots higher than the No. 13 ranking given by the USTFCCCA. They closed out their 2017 competition season at the ECAC Championships where they finished third overall, landing Katie Leisher, Lucy Jones and Grace Moore on the All-East team for their performances.
"In a year with ups and downs, we still ended up having by far the best season we have ever had as a program," said head coach James Snyder. "Third in the conference and 10th in the region were huge steps forward from where we had been, boosting excitement levels for this season tremendously."
Meet the Owls
On the women's side, the cross country team will return all but one athlete after the graduation of senior Katie Pinson. Through Pinson Temple will lose a consistent scorer and vocal leader for the Owls, but Snyder knows the future of the program is bright with the core of returners and solid recruiting class on the team this fall.
Temple will return strong talent this season bringing back senior Katie Leisher, junior Grace Moore and sophomore Lucy Jones. All three athletes racked up All-East accolades last season and Leisher and Jones landed a spot on the All-Conference squad.
"Katie comes back this season for her last go around after being our top girl at the conference and regional meet last season," explained Snyder. "She has been All-Conference twice and we expect her to crack into that top group at the conference level. Grace had a very successful track season and is someone who I believe will be a huge difference maker for us. Lucy was our first freshman to land a spot on the All-Conference team and we will look to rely on her to stand out in the front of the crew. All three girls clearly took care of business this summer, and I am very excited to see what they can do come Friday."
Temple also brought in a talented group of newcomers to add to an impressive core of returners. Leading this pack will be graduate student Kira Van Ehren and freshman Lexi Walsh.
"Kira comes to us from Germany after a very successful track season. She ran a PR in the 5K this summer and I expect her to be a large contributor. Lexi is a girl who stood out to us and was All-State in Pennsylvania last year in cross country. She also took advantage of the summer training to really help her transform into a collegiate athlete and it has shown the past few weeks."
Temple has a lot to look forward to this season with the addition of these talented runners to the roster and the effort the entire team has shown in the first few weeks back on the course.
"We have higher expectations than ever before, but we also have a more talented group than ever before," said Snyder. "I think that the opportunity to go to New Orleans and contend for a conference title is very realistic. At the regional level where it gets more competitive, we will try to take another step forward and compete among the best programs in our area. We are a stronger team this year, and cracking into that next group of teams is our priority."
The Owls also look forward to an exciting change this year as they have advanced into the Blue section of the Joe Piane Invitational at Notre Dame where they will compete on Friday, September 28th. This is another new challenge for Temple as this will be their first experience in the higher section after finishing second in the Gold category last season.
"I think that we have shown regionally that we can be quite competitive against the teams around us, and this will give us the opportunity to face some of the best teams in the country," said Snyder. "To be able to see where we stack up against these teams will really give us a perspective of where we are and where we can really go."
The women's cross country squad with kick off the 2018 season at their first and only home meet of the season this Friday, August 31st at Belmont Plateau where they host the Temple Invitational. The race is set for 6:00 pm as the Owls look to achieve back-to-back regular season team titles on their home course.
Last year was a break-through year for the women's cross country squad. The Owls started the season with a first place finish at both the Temple Invitational and the Rider Invitational. Later in the season at the American Athletic Conference Championships, Temple finished a program high third while placing two athletes on the All-Conference team.
At the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional, the Owls set another program record when they finished 10th out of 28 teams, three spots higher than the No. 13 ranking given by the USTFCCCA. They closed out their 2017 competition season at the ECAC Championships where they finished third overall, landing Katie Leisher, Lucy Jones and Grace Moore on the All-East team for their performances.
"In a year with ups and downs, we still ended up having by far the best season we have ever had as a program," said head coach James Snyder. "Third in the conference and 10th in the region were huge steps forward from where we had been, boosting excitement levels for this season tremendously."
Meet the Owls
On the women's side, the cross country team will return all but one athlete after the graduation of senior Katie Pinson. Through Pinson Temple will lose a consistent scorer and vocal leader for the Owls, but Snyder knows the future of the program is bright with the core of returners and solid recruiting class on the team this fall.
Temple will return strong talent this season bringing back senior Katie Leisher, junior Grace Moore and sophomore Lucy Jones. All three athletes racked up All-East accolades last season and Leisher and Jones landed a spot on the All-Conference squad.
"Katie comes back this season for her last go around after being our top girl at the conference and regional meet last season," explained Snyder. "She has been All-Conference twice and we expect her to crack into that top group at the conference level. Grace had a very successful track season and is someone who I believe will be a huge difference maker for us. Lucy was our first freshman to land a spot on the All-Conference team and we will look to rely on her to stand out in the front of the crew. All three girls clearly took care of business this summer, and I am very excited to see what they can do come Friday."
Temple also brought in a talented group of newcomers to add to an impressive core of returners. Leading this pack will be graduate student Kira Van Ehren and freshman Lexi Walsh.
"Kira comes to us from Germany after a very successful track season. She ran a PR in the 5K this summer and I expect her to be a large contributor. Lexi is a girl who stood out to us and was All-State in Pennsylvania last year in cross country. She also took advantage of the summer training to really help her transform into a collegiate athlete and it has shown the past few weeks."
Temple has a lot to look forward to this season with the addition of these talented runners to the roster and the effort the entire team has shown in the first few weeks back on the course.
"We have higher expectations than ever before, but we also have a more talented group than ever before," said Snyder. "I think that the opportunity to go to New Orleans and contend for a conference title is very realistic. At the regional level where it gets more competitive, we will try to take another step forward and compete among the best programs in our area. We are a stronger team this year, and cracking into that next group of teams is our priority."
The Owls also look forward to an exciting change this year as they have advanced into the Blue section of the Joe Piane Invitational at Notre Dame where they will compete on Friday, September 28th. This is another new challenge for Temple as this will be their first experience in the higher section after finishing second in the Gold category last season.
"I think that we have shown regionally that we can be quite competitive against the teams around us, and this will give us the opportunity to face some of the best teams in the country," said Snyder. "To be able to see where we stack up against these teams will really give us a perspective of where we are and where we can really go."
The women's cross country squad with kick off the 2018 season at their first and only home meet of the season this Friday, August 31st at Belmont Plateau where they host the Temple Invitational. The race is set for 6:00 pm as the Owls look to achieve back-to-back regular season team titles on their home course.
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
Ep. 29: Last Episode of First Semester from David & Amelia
Wednesday, December 17
MBB Press Conference vs. Saint Francis (Adam Fisher)
Sunday, December 14
MBB Press Conference vs. Saint Francis (Derrian Ford & Gavin Griffiths)
Sunday, December 14
Ep. 28: Vice President/Debbie & Stanley Lefkowitz '65 Director of Athletics Arthur Johnson
Friday, December 12
