After a week off, the Plattsburgh State cross-country teams are ready to compete in the SLU Hoffman Invitational. The meet will be the first 8K for the men and the first 6K for the women.
Head coach Andrew Krug said this race will be a test for the runners.
“The St. Lawrence meet will be our women’s first 6K and our men’s first 8K, so we are jumping up in our distance and just looking to have our returners improve from what they did last year on that course,” Krug said.
The SLU meet will have teams from St. Lawrence, but the PSUC coaches are unsure who else will be there. Krug and assistant coach Ryan Douglas both said they think Clarkson will be there and, if Clarkson shows, will be good competition.
Douglas said Krug hit the nail on the head and the race will be the first real test for the teams.
Krug said he hopes the teams can use this race as a starting point for the runners to see what they need to do with the longer race.
On the men’s side, Krug said sophomore runner Ethan Vinson is attempting to come back after he was injured early on in his last race.
Krug also said he believes some of the other runners that will finish near the top will be freshman Nathan Doyle, the top finisher in the two of the team’s races, junior Zach Rose, who has consistently done well, and sophomore Louis Castellani, who is competing in his first race of the season.
On the women’s side, Krug said he hopes senior Katie Ehmann and freshmen Haley Mooney and Lindsay Davenport are able to finish high in the standings. For Mooney and Davenport, this will be their first 6K of their collegiate careers, and Mooney said she needs to make sure she keeps her pace through the race.
“I don’t know what to expect because it’s a 6K and I’ve only run a 5K, so it’s going to be different,” Mooney said. “Definitely going to pace myself more, go a little slower at the beginning then I’m used to so that way I can finish stronger.”
The uptick in distance should be a good test for a Cardinals team that has finished in the top-five in two of their first three races.
Email Nick Topping at sports@cardinalpointsonline.com.
