Race Results

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (September 5, 2009) -- Running the season-opening Vassar Invitational in sweltering heat has become somewhat of a tradition for the Vassar men's cross country team. They carried on that tradition on Saturday, and also continued one more by capturing the title for the seventh straight year at the Vassar Farm Course.

Vassar was a clear step ahead of the field, placing six runners in the top 10 and nine in the top 15 to win with a score of 27. New Paltz placed second with a score of 63, followed by Stevens (65), Baruch (148), Purchase (161), Bard (184), John Jay (212), MSMC (236), Lehman (244), CCNY (245), and CIA (269).

The battle for first place was a tight one between Vassar's Jon Erickson and New Paltz's Joe Gentsch. They matched each other stride for stride in the final lap around the farm field before the straightaway to the finish line, but it was Gentsch that had enough in the tank to earn the win by one step with a time of 20:25, a 5:29 pace. Erickson finished one second behind with a time of 20:26.

The next wave of finishers was dominated by the burgundy and gray. Freshman Yaron Teich placed fourth with a time of 20:48, and five more Vassar runners followed soon after him. Sophomore William Healy finished seventh (21:01), senior captain Danny McBee eighth (21:01), freshman Samuel Wagner ninth (21:33), senior Daniel Liebowitz 10th (21:38) and sophomore Matthew Blair 11th (21:39).

It was only the first race of the season, but Vassar showed strength from both its seniors and its newcomers. “I'm very happy with how the guys ran today,” said coach James McCowan. “We're not interested in times at this point in the season. Our goals were really to be competitive, run as a team, and we did that.”

It was a collective team strategy that may have helped the Brewers finish so strongly. McCowan stressed the need to run with control and be careful about the heat, and the team responded.

“The best thing about today was our pack,” said Erickson. “As a team we kept it controlled, and it paid off when we hit the farm road.” That farm road, a long open stretch towards the end of the race that is scorched by the mid-day sun, was where Vassar's top scorers separated themselves from the rest of the field.

“The challenge of the course is mental,” McCowan said. His team was clearly prepared for that challenge, as experienced runners improved their times and first-time runners made impressive debuts.

Two of those debuts came from Teich and Healy, whose success in the first race of the year hinted at a promising season to come. Teich stressed the need to stay relaxed throughout the race to prevent overexcitement, or the sun, from throwing him off. Healy's interpretation of the course was even more simple: “it's a lot more fun to run in the woods.”

McBee's eighth place finish shaved one minute off of his time from last year's invitational. Sophomore Zach Williams (13th, 21:51), senior Ges Adams (15th, 21:54) and sophomore Evan Russek (16th, 21:57) were also strong finishers for Vassar. 

The Brewers will travel to Hamilton next Saturday for a Noon race.

Jon Erickson talks about the 2009 Invitational Race