Patriot League Official Athletic Site

Sept. 9, 2009

Center Valley, Pa. -- Bucknell's Andrew Huebner and Anthony Rizzo were named the Male Runner of the Week and Rookie of the Week, respectively, after leading the Bison to a first-place finish at the Harry Lang Invitational.

On the women's side, Colgate's Elise DeRoo was selected as the Female Runner of the Week and Navy's Brigid Byrne was named the Rookie of the Week.

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Male Runner of the Week

Andrew Huebner, Bucknell Sr., Hapton Falls, N.H. Huebner, the team's co-captain, led the Bison to a first-place finish at the Harry Lang Invitational at Colgate. The Bison senior placed second (20:36) out of 89 runners at the invite.

Female Runner of the Week

Elise DeRoo, Colgate So., Newton, Conn. DeRoo won the individual title at the Harry Lang Invitational at Colgate, falling one second short of the course record set by teammate and former Patriot League Champion Stacey Marion in 2007. DeRoo helped Colgate to a second-place finish with her time of 16:09 in the 4k.

Male Rookie of the Week

Anthony Rizzo, Bucknell Fr., Wapwallopen, Pa. Rizzo placed 10th in his first collegiate meet, helping the Bison take the top spot at the Harry Lang Invitational at Colgate. Rizzo, the highest-placing freshman at the invite, completed the 6k course in 21:20. He was 10th out of 89 runners.

Female Rookie of the Week

Brigid Byrne, Navy Fr., Vienna, Va. Byrne finished ninth at the Mount St. Mary's 5k Duals, helping the Midshipmen go 5-0 at the meet. The Navy freshman finished ahead of 57 runners in a time of 19:17.08. She was fifth out of seven Navy runners who placed in the top 11.

Honorable Mention Performances Last Week

Jillian Busby, Army Fr., Merrimack, N.H. Busby placed first at the Army Open, finishing in 18:58.8.

Zac Reiter, Army Sr., Rock Springs, Wyo. Reiter placed first at the Army Open with a time of 15:46.8.

Steve Sample, Lehigh Jr., Monmouth Junction, N.J. Sample helped Lehigh take first place with his top finish at the Lehigh Valley Championship. He finished the race in 18:45.0.

Dominic DellaPelle, Navy So., Kennett Square, Pa. DellaPelle placed third out of 52 runners at the UMES Invitational with a time of 26:10.79. The third-place finish, which was the highest of his collegiate career, was just 8.38 seconds away from first place.

Amy Watson, Navy Sr., Hampstead, Md. Watson led Navy to a 5-0 record at the Mount St. Mary's 5k Duals with a third-place finish and time of 18:59.58. She has led the Midshipmen to first-place finishes in each of her last seven races.

Patriot League Notebook

Reinforcements

The Army men's team graduated its top two runners, but there's plenty of runners ready to step up and take the place of Patriot League champion Jon Anderson and First-Team All-League runner Andrew Catalano. Coming off their seventh League title in 19 seasons, Army returns two of its four All-League performers from last season. Stepping into the limelight will be Second-Team All-League seniors Zac Reiter, who finished 10th last season (25:17.5), and Kirk Chitwood, who placed 14th (25:22.2). Also returning for Army is junior Torre Alexis, who just missed an All-League performance, finishing 16th (25:25.4). Junior Bryce Livingston (19th) and senior Greg Griffith (26th) also return.

Vying For Three-peat

The Navy women's team's performance at the 2008 League meet was dominant, and with seven of eight top-15 runners returning, the Midshipmen are prepared to win their third straight title. The individual League champion, Amy Watson, who placed 153rd at the NCAA Championships, returns for her senior season. She was one of four First-Team All-League runners for Navy as junior Katie Rentz finished third, sophomore Marina McGrial placed fourth and sophomore Jess Palacio was fifth. Second-Team All-League runners Lexa Gass (ninth) and Anna Bernal (14th) also return, with 15th-place finisher sophomore Kristine Mun. Junior Bethany Rahall (26th), senior Erica Ziel (29th) and senior Jenny Rubin (36th) will provide depth for the experienced Midshipmen.

Navy Sweeps Preseason Polls

The Navy men's and women's cross country teams have been selected to finish first in their respective 2009 Patriot League Preseason Polls. Both squads are the reigning Patriot League Champions. The Navy women's squad, which won the title outright last season, earned 97 points in the preseason poll, including 13 first-place votes. Bucknell garnered the other three first-place votes and 87 points to finish second in the poll. Lehigh was picked to finish third with 67 points, followed by Army (58) and Colgate (41). Holy Cross (40), American (38) and Lafayette (18) round out the eight teams in the poll. On the men's side, Navy took the top spot with 95 points and 11 first-place votes. Army picked up the other five first-place votes and 89 points to finish second. American (69), Lehigh (61) and Bucknell (55) followed in third, fourth and fifth place, respectively. Holy Cross and Colgate tied for sixth with 31 points, while Lafayette was picked eighth with 15 points.

2009 Patriot League Championships

The 2009 Patriot League Cross Country Championships will take place on Oct. 31 at Colgate University. The top-14 finishers in both the men and women's race will be awarded All-Patriot League status, with the top-seven being named to the First-Team and the next seven earning Second-Team recognition.

Team Notebooks

American The Eagles competed at the Mount St. Mary's 5k Duals, with the men finishing 5-0 and the women finishing 3-2. On the men's side, the Eagles boasted the top seven runners, including first-place finisher Josh Olsen (15:42.52). Octavia Rinehardt won the women's title, finishing in 18:22.80, more than 30 seconds ahead of the 2008 Patriot League Champion, Amy Watson, of Navy. She will get the chance to run against Watson again on Saturday as the Eagles will compete at the Navy Invitational.

Army The Black Knights hosted the unscored Army Open with both Zac Reiter and Jillian Busby placing first for the men and women, respectively. Reiter, a senior, won the top spot with a time of 15:46.8, while Busby, a freshman in her first collegiate race, won the event with a time of 18:44, more than 30 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher. Army will compete at the Cornell Dual Meet on Friday.

Bucknell The Bison opened their season on a high note, as the men's and women's teams earned first-place finishes at the 15th Annual Harry Lang Invitational on Saturday. The Bison claimed the fourth through seventh spots in the women's race, led by Sarah Moniz, who completed the 4k course in 16:30. The men were led by Andrew Huebner, who finished second in the 6k race with a time of 20:36. Bucknell will compete in a dual meet at Duquesne on Sept. 19.

Colgate The Raiders hosted the 15th Annual Harry Lang Invitational on Saturday, finishing second on the women's side and third on the men's. Sophomore Elise DeRoo scored the top finish for the women, falling one second short of the meet record with her time of 18:44 in the 4k race. Ed Sheridan led the men's squad with a sixth-place finish (21:01) on the 6k course. The Raiders will return to the course on Sept. 19 when they host the Colgate Invitational.

Holy Cross The Crusaders did not compete this weekend and will open their 2009 season Saturday at the Blue Devil Invitational at Central Connecticut.

Lafayette The Leopards opened the season Friday at the Lehigh Valley Championship with the women's team finishing second and the men's team placing third. Sarah Welsh-Huggins led the women's team with her first-place finish (22:31.4). Ryan Stasiowski had the top finish on the men's side, placing third (18:50.5). Lafayette will return to the course on Sept. 19 when it hosts League rival Lehigh in a dual meet.

Lehigh The Mountain Hawks defended their home course Friday by winning the men's and women's title at the Lehigh Valley Championship. Junior Steve Sample took the top spot on the men's side (18:45.0), edging out teammate Jordan Inacio (18:49.6). Sophomore Katherine Pierce finished second in the women's race (22:45.4) as she was one of five Lehigh runners in the top 12. Both squads will compete against Lafayette at 10 a.m. Sept. 19.

Navy The Midshipmen men and women were separated last weekend, but each found success. The women, led by senior Amy Watson, went 5-0 at the Mount St. Mary's 5k Duals, while the men were second out of seven teams at the UMES Invitational. Sophomore Dominic DellaPelle, like Watson, finished third. The two runners will hit the course this Saturday when the Midshipmen host the Navy Open.