The Binghamton University cross country teams may find this season quite different from last year. Both teams showed tremendous improvement across the board last year, and with a batch of talented new faces, the Bearcats expect to make a lot of noise in the America East this season.

The teams opened the season last weekend at the Stony Brook-hosted Seawolves Invitational with a pair of third place finishes. Eight teams battled for the men’s race while seven women’s teams fought it out for first place.

Two freshmen led the Bearcats, as Gerald Mcdonald and Ashley Horton stole the spotlight with seventh place finishes in the men’s and women’s races respectively. Mcdonald finished the 6,000-meter with a time of 18:04, while Horton completed the 4,000-meter course with a time of 16:21.

‘It was a good first meet,’ said head coach Annette Acuff. ‘We’re very pleased with how we performed in our first meet. It’s the most talent on both sides that we have had in several years.’

Acuff also said Horton has not missed a step making the transition to Division I competition.

‘Ashley had a great summer; she was very fit,’ Acuff said. ‘I expected to see her in the top three. But you know on any given day a runner can break through.’

Junior Katie Radzik, the defending ECAC champion, placed 14th and finished at 16:52. Freshmen Kelly Billingiere finished on Radzik’s heels at 15th while Renee Blair placed 19th at 17:05. Sara Veith was 20th.

Freshman Andrew Ugolino placed 9th (18:06) in the men’s race for Binghamton while sophomore Craig Coon was 16th (18:31). Freshman Casey Quaglia and junior Connor Martin were 18th and 23rd respectively.

New Faces

These were races dominated by Bearcat freshmen as four of the first five women and three of the first five men to finish for the Bearcats were freshman.

‘I honestly couldn’t be more excited about our men’s freshman recruiting class,’ Acuff said. ‘Adam Quinn and Casey Quaglia should have an immediate impact with our cross country program, with both of them having the potential to be significant scorers for us.’

Cross country has more than new runners this season, as the program notched a part-time assistant cross country and track and field coach. Fred Joslyn was recently hired to the position and will serve there while he completes his master’s degree at SUNY Cortland.

Joslyn is a five-time Division III All-American who recently competed in the Chicago Marathon

‘We are excited to have Fred join our program,’ Acuff said. ‘With his background, he is going to be a huge asset here at Binghamton.’

The Big Two

It’s easy to get caught up with all the new faces, but returning runners like junior Katie Radzik and sophomore Chris Gaube cannot be overlooked.

Radzik was recently named a co-winner of the 2006-07 Women Athlete of the Year by the BU athletics department. She won the award solo the previous year. Last fall, Radzik was the first Bearcat to win the ECAC championship, outlasting 165 runners. She earned all-conference honors last year with a fourth-place finish at the America East Championship.

On the men’s side, Gaube had a busy summer following his outstanding freshman season last year, when he led the men’s team in five out of the six races. Gaube launched the Relentless Run Training Club, or RRTC, which is a locally-based running club designed to help high school runners prepare for their upcoming cross country seasons.

‘I’ve thought about becoming a coach (following college) and this was a great chance to see what being in that role is like,’ Gaube said. ‘There is a lot I had to learn when I got to Binghamton, and with what I have gained my first year here, I want to pass that on to younger runners.’

Acuff considers Gaube to be a ‘natural leader.’

‘He’s great with youth. He did a terrific job this summer,’ she said. Gaube missed the season’s opening meet, still nursing a preseason injury.

The Bearcat Invitational

The Bearcats come home for their only home meet of the year when they play host at the Binghamton Invitational at 11 a.m. this Saturday. Katie Radzik won this race last year and looks to match that mark again.

‘We’re using this home meet as training. It’s early in the season and both Syracuse and Columbia are high profile schools in the region, easily top-10 teams, so we going to use this as a solid training race,’ Acuff said.