Army Women Finish Fifth At PL Cross Country Championships

Army sophomore Megan Curran overcame the rain and mud to finish seventh and classmate Roxanne Wegman placed 14th in the 6k race as the Black Knights finished fifth at the Patriot League Women’s Cross Country Championships held at the Harry H. Lang Cross Country Course on the campus of Colgate University.

Curran earned all-league honors for the second start year after picking up first team status with her seventh place finish. The Chelmsford, Mass., native clocked a time of 24 minutes, 10.5 seconds in turning in the Black Knights top finish for the second straight meet this season.

Wegman was Army’s next runner to complete the challenging course, clocking a time of 24:33.6 to place 14t h, which earned her second team all-Patriot League honors.

Freshmen Jayna Tangen and Ashley Morgan, along with senior Andrea Edgar, rounded out Army’s top five runners, placing 30th, 31st and 37th, respectively in times of 25:19.5, 25:19.8 and 25:33.3. Junior Kristen Dawson finished 38th (25:36.8) and plebe Andrea Edgar was the third Army freshman to cross, taking 46th (26:21.9).

"The times were slow today because of the heavy rains, which turned the course into sea of mud,” commented first-year coach Laura Kirchgraber. “The course is challenging enough with sharp turns along with a lot of uphill and downhill running, which was made even more difficult today because of the weather.

“Our team worked hard and did their best under difficult conditions. I was pleased with everyone’s performance, especially Megan (Curran) and Roxanne (Wegman) for finishing in the Top 15 and earning league honors.

“We are a young team that picked up great experience today, which will aid us in our development.”

Bucknell, placing all five runners in the Top 10, including individual winner Leanna Nastase (23:06.5), defended its team title with 28 points. Navy was a distant second with 79 points, while host Colgate, picked seventh in the preseason standings, grabbed third-place honors with 82 points. Lehigh (92) was fourth followed by Army (119), Amercan (148), Lafayette (184) and Holy Cross (224).

The Black Knights return to action Nov. 11 when they participate at the NCAA East Regionals at Van Cortlandt Park

Pictured: Meghan Curran Photo Credit: AAC