The GW cross country teams competed at the La Salle Invitational Saturday, with the men’s team finishing sixth place out of nine and the women placing third out of eight teams.
Certain meets carry more weight than others, but this weekend’s meet did not carry much weight. It was training for the bigger meets, which are a couple of weeks away.
In two weeks, the team competes in the Bronx, N.Y. for the ECAC/IC4A competition, which is one of the major events for the team this year.
The performance of freshmen David Talbird and Matt Kascak was more important than the sixth-place finish this weekend for the men. Coach Jim Hopkins said that much of the success this year, and in coming years, rests on the shoulders of these two young runners.
Talbird placed 27th overall, finishing the eight-kilometer race in 26:47, while Kascak finished 43rd overall.
The men were led by senior Jeff McCarthy. McCarthy finished the race l9th overall after placing first at last week’s GW Invitational.
The women placed third overall behind Villanova University and La Salle.
Leading them was senior Julie Ann Laurance, who finished the five-kilometer race l9th overall. Her time was 20:11. On her heals was Jenee Petersen, who finished in 20:30. The first four GW women finished in the top 30, including Laurance, Petersen, Yumi Cosbert (25th) and Brande Dietrich (26th).
The Colonial women’s finish demonstrates a strength in the middle portion of the team. Hopkins has said another key to success this season is the strong finishes from GW’s three and four runners.