Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Regional Meet Looms

On the heels of strong finishes in Big East competition, Georgetown heads to the NCAA Mid-Atlantic regional championships next weekend for a meet that will determine which teams advance to the NCAA Championships later this month.

Georgetown has enjoyed a steady stream of great performances already this season including second place finishes for both the men and the women at last week’s Big East championships. Both teams finished just behind Providence.

Next week at the NCAA regional event, the top two teams will automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships at the end of November. Teams that do not finish in first or second must await the possibility of receiving an at-large bid.

Strong leaders have emerged on both the men’s and women’s teams. Senior Liz Maloy and junior Melissa Grelli have finished 1-2 in every meet they’ve run this season so far.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that Liz and Melissa are going to run well,” Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Ron Helmer said. “The whole team is at a point where we’re ready to run better than we have all season.”

At last week’s Big East meet, the pair took third and eighth place, respectively, in a highly competitive field.

“Having Liz there in the workouts and in the races is definitely comforting and we feed off each other,” Grelli said, “All the girls have been working hard and we are ready as a team to put the pieces together.”

Since the top five finishers from each team count toward the final score, the next three Hoyas to cross the line will be crucial. Junior Maggie Infeld has been a regular scorer this season along with grad student Hillary Bontz, who has steadily improved all season, turning in her best race of the season last week as she finished fourth on the team and 18th fastest in the Big East. Sophomore Natasha LaBeaud has been hobbled by injury but has managed to place in several meets.

“The goal is to get the automatic qualifier and then stay fresh for NCAAs,” Helmer said. “Winning isn’t out top goal, but that would be great. We just need to make sure we’re at the National meet.”

Junior Jennie Funk has been a consistent scorer in her best season yet as a Hoya, but she will not run this weekend to stay fresh for the NCAA meet the following week.

“Jennie’s ready to run at a high level and keeping her fresh for the NCAA meet is the best option for her and team,” Helmer said.

The men’s team has an impressive history at the regional event. In 2004, Georgetown captured the win as senior Rod Koborsi (COL ’05) led the team with an individual victory. Last year the men successfully defended their championship as graduate student Fleet Hower won the individual title.

Entering the meet, the men’s team is ranked first in the id-Atlantic region by the Cross Country Coaches’ Assosciation. Led by senior Matt Debole, the Georgetown squad is deep enough to earn a ticket to the big race although Princeton, Villanova and American University could pose a tough challenge. They have been nipping at Georgetown’s heels in the Coaches’ poll all season.

Sophomore Levi Miller has also contributed strong finishes and continues to improve. At last week’s Big East meet, Miller finished in 12th place overall and third on the team to gain all-Big East honors.

“I feel really good going into the regional meet,” Assistant Coach Pat Henner said. “We’ve had some of our best workouts this last week and the team is running strong.”

A herd of Hoyas make up a group that could possibly round out the top five places. Juniors Justin Scheid and Michael Banks finished in 14th and 21st places at the Big East race last week. Banks gained all-Big East honors with his top-15 performance.

Should the Hoyas accomplish their goal this weekend, they will next compete at the NCAA Championships in Terre Haute, Ind. on Nov. 20.

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