The men went off at 12:00, and perhaps the desire and effort to make the trip to Nationals overshadowed the importance of doing well once there? It was a tough day for the men, though their 24th place  - unfortunately the dubious honor being the final scoring team - finish will not take anything away from their incredible season. Unlike the women, they were not assured one of the qualifying spots and had to focus on trying to get that last qualifying spot the weekend before, and that seemed to take a lot more out of them then we would have hoped. After a particularly tough race, it is often difficult to put into words what happened or try and explain what might have happened when you are not sure yourself. The guys are a very driven group, who fortunately also have a great sense of humor, so after digesting what happened and dealing with it as best as possible, we were all able to make light of the performance with some humor. "It is tough to finish first, but also it is tough to finish last, and we were able to do that" and "35 guys can get All-American honors but how many of them can be the last one across the line (excluding of course those who failed to finish)". The guys raced great all season long and were tough as nails the weekend before to get to the meet, and we are confident that they will build on this experience and be an even stronger team next season and will look to try and return and write a different ending. Matt Katz was the top finisher for the team, as he just missed cracking the top 100. Jack Morgan and Dave Molina raced with each other through the entire race, as they have done throughout the season. John Stanton-geddes, Brandt Tullis and Mike Page - with the gator nipping at his heels (again, laughter is sometimes the best medicine) rounded out the seven shaved headed Amherst runners who did what no other group of men at Amherst have been able to do - get the chance to race at the Nationals as a team. The last race for us this year may not have been the best, nor indicative of their full potential but it will certainly not take away from all of their accomplishments throughout the season.

The men have been close to making the trip to Nationals on a few occasions but have always come up short. This year's squad was determined to make the trip - the new black uniforms that they broke out for the meet, combined with the smoothly shaven heads, showed everyone that the meant business. The guys established themselves right from the gun and it was clearly going to be a tight team battle, especially for that sought after 4th spot. Looking at MIT and Bates as the primary competition for that spot, we tried to cover any of their moves. An MIT runner won the race though there was an official's error that took the lead runners off the course that allowed the MIT harrier to surge into a big lead which he would carry through the finish. Mike Page moved up through the race and cracked the Top 10 midway through the race and made sure that he was not going to lose that position. Matt Katz was determined to improve upon his 36th place finish from each of the last 2 years, had a bit of a bad race - according to him - but still finished strong in 22nd, earning All-New ENgland honors. Jack Morgan would finish 3rd for the team again, and finished in 34th (All-New England is Top 35) and had another very strong middle of the race to close down on two Bates runners and an MIT guy in the waning stages of the race. John Stanton-Geddes went out strong and then started to fade in the middle of the race but fortunately rallied strong when Dave Molina came up on him and together they worked the last mile hard and would prove to be essential. In the last 200m, the MIT 4 and 5 runners were ahead of Dave and Stang, but a strong move from Molina and Stang caught them both and pulled ahead, and then right at the line the 4th runner from MIT pulled back in front of both. Dave Schreiner battled with the Bates 5th runner, and Brandt Tullis rounded out the scoring for us. The waiting for the results was excruciating, as we knew that it was extremely tight with Halston Taylor's MIT team. The unofficial results came back, and by one point - a matter of kicking down or being out kicked - it was Amherst in the 4th spot, and the last ticket to the NCAA Championships. This will be the first ever for the men, and with both teams making the trip, there is a great deal of excitement for Saturday's race in Hanover, Indiana. With the knowledge that there is some room to improve upon, we are looking to trying to crack the Top 10 and hopefully bring another spot back to the region for next year.

The men, like the women, took full advantage of the tapering and lighter workload and the results more then showed this. Cooper Knowlton led the men, as he had another solid outing as he ran to a time of 28:07 and cracked the races Top 30. Evan Guiney and Robert Boley finished a mere 3 seconds of each other, as both had clearly their best races of the season - both in time and effort. Rich Wilson was the next in line, finishing just under the 29 minute mark for the hilly 5 mile course and just off of his seasonal best set at the racetrack of Umass Dartmouth. Adam David, with the mustache blowing in the wind, kept hammering that pace and his efforts paid off as he raced to his fastest time of the year  - well under the 30 minute mark. Billy McNitt, clearly the most improved runner this fall, was looking for the last chance to break 30 minutes and he went after it with everything that he had, missing it by a mere 3 seconds. A little less wind, and who knows, but his efforts - both in practice and on meet day, have inspired everyone. John Babbott finished just off of Billy, and despite the leg and ankle fracture suffered late this summer, he was still able to recover well enough to get in some races at the end of the year and gain experience for next season.

The men, looking for solid results and a Top 3 finish, certainly got pumped up watching the women's race and they took the momentum with them into their race. The pace started out slow through the first mile before things started to heat up. A Williams and Conn College runner broke away from the pack, but several Amherst runners were in the and around the next chase pack. Matt Katz established his Top 10 position early on and  started to move strongly in the 2nd half of the race. Mike Page went conservatively and then as he got warmed up, there was not much to stop him as he moved quickly through the pack of runners in front of him and pulled into the to group in the last mile and wound up 3rd, with a hard charging Matt Katz leading a chase pack of Tufts runners and earning 6th place - both were First Team All-Conference runners. The biggest move, and possibly the difference in the teams finish was Jack Morgan's finishing mile as he made a huge move and went by about 20 guys during the last mile of the race. John Stanton-Geddes finished 4th for the team and will be counted on as a force at Districts. Dave Molina stepped up a again as the 5th man, and has been a huge boost for the team since returning from injury. Dave Schreiner came in 2 places after, and then first year Brandt Tullis finished out the Varsity 7 with another strong race. While Tufts, with incredible depth and sheer numbers, grabbed their first ever title and Williams was finishing 2nd, the men held off Colby and Bates to finish 3rd - their best ever finish, and a huge improvement from last years 9th place finish. Cooper Knowlton had a strong race, as he went out hard and laid it on the line, as did Evan Guiney and Rich Wilson - again finishing within pushing distance of each other, as they have all season. John Babbott, in his first true race since a disastrous leg fracture this summer, cracked 30 minutes in the open race and showed that he definitely would have been a huge factor on this team had he not been hurt. Adam David and Billy McNitt worked together through the entire race and finished strongly. As is the case with the women, the Top 7 guys will sit this weekend out, in preparation for the District qualifier.

The men, inspired by the brilliant running of the women, were looking to end a streak of their own, as Williams had won the last 15 years in a row. A slow first mile found a huge pack at the front, and then things spilt up quickly as Mike Page and Williams All-American runner Neal Holtschulte broke away and never looked back. The two raced together until the 5th mile before Neal broke away for good. Page would grab 2nd place, while hot on his heels was Matt Katz and a Wesleyan runner who were battling out the entire homestretch and the Wes guy would edge out Matt for 3rd. John Stanton-Geddes wound up 7th, amidst a group of Williams runners - some of who did not see the large white arrow marking the left hand turn on the trails and would run a few extra meters before being called back on course. Jack Morgan, knowing that every person counted, dug down with a big kick to knock of an Eph right near the finish line. Dave Molina, in only his 2nd race of the season, came on strong and had an awesome race to finish 5th for the team and 13th overall, with Dave Schreiner coming in a few seconds after him and then Brandt Tullis coming across the line 7th for the team. Evan Guiney had a great race, and a huge kick in the last 200 meters, and was followed closely by Cooper Knowlton.  Rich Wilson and Rob Boley both broke the 30 minute mark on the tough course, and Billy McNitt had another awesome race as her raced to his best Amherst course time, and improved about 20 places from last year's finish. Adam David came in right behind Billy and John Babbott, racing for the first time since shattering his leg in an accident this summer, had a strong showing as did Sam Hayman. Despite the great efforts of the team, we would wind up a mere 2 points behind Williams, allowing the dreaded streak to continue for at least another year. The finish was the closest that it has been in the last few years, and hopefully next year the results will be different.

The men did not fare as well, but on a very off day, they still managed to improve upon last years finish along with being the 6th best DIII team. Matt Katz finished strongly to lead the men and cracked the top 50, while John Stanton-Geddes came in shortly after him. Jack Morgan came in with a fast charging, and quickly improving, Dave Schreiner close on his heels as both cracked 27 minutes. Brandt Tullis had another strong race, as did fellow first year Cooper Knowlton to round out the scoring. In the sub varsity race, Dave Molina returned to action for the first time this year and raced a very impressive time and that could be a big boost to the success of the team, as will be the great race turned in by first year Nate Freese. Evan Guiney and Rich Wilson, coming in a few strides apart s they have all season raced very well, while Rob Boley shook off some mid week illness to post a strong finish with Adam David. Again, a big story for the team was the much improved Billy McNitt, who nearly broke 30 minutes and knocked off more then 2 minutes from his time a year ago.

The men were without several key runners, as Mike Page and Matt Katz both were unable to race, and the results were not as strong as the team would have normally produced. John Stanton-Geddes paced the team with his Top 10 finish, against some of the regions top runners. Cooper Knowlton was the second Jeff to cross the line as he had a solid outing, and Jack Morgan running comfortably throughout the race came in a few steps behind him. Brandt Tullis, Dave Schreiner and Nate Freese all finished within a few seconds of one another, as they each continued to improve and are all looking to be the guys who step up and close the gap. Evan Guiney, despite spending the majority of the week in the pool nursing a sore achilles, had a strong race on the hilly course, and Robert Boley has become a new man on the XC course as he raced nearly as fast as he did the previous week, despite the course being much more difficult and slower. Billy McNitt, another one of the guys who has improved dramatically from last year to this year, and from week to week, knocked nearly a minute off from his previous best time and looked awesome as he earned the flash shirt given out by the team to the guy who performed the best in the meet.

The men grabbed the victory by the narrowest of margins as they held off a very deep Tufts team (who sat out two of their top runners) by a mere point - 64-65. Mike Page and John Stanton-Geddes finished less then a second apart in 4th and 5th, as they both ran well under 26 minutes - the first time for Page. Matt Katz, came in very shortly after, as he grabbed 9th and nearly raced to his XC PR (missing by a mere 3 seconds). Jack Morgan, started off conservatively in the race, but ripped the last 2 miles to finish strong in 13th, just missing cracking the 26 minute barrier. First years Cooper Knowlton and Brandt Tullis raced great to finish as the 5th and 6th runners, separated by only a few seconds, and Dave Schreiner got his season started with a strong race (late summer, early fall illness that caused 2 weeks of non-running) and should continue to improve as he gets back into shape. Evan Guiney and Rich Wilson raced together for the entire JV race as both posted great times and solid racing, while Robert Boley truly found his stride to knock nearly 5 minutes from his previous best 5 mile race. Adam David just missed cracking 30 minutes, while coming in behind him were Chase Bourke and Billy McNitt with strong races.

The women posted a dominant win, as they scored a meet low 29 points to ward off possibly Nationally ranked Trinity team. Carter Hamill led a 2-3-4-6 finish by Aly Venti (who returned from her studies abroad from last fall), first year harrier Shauneen Garrahan who could be one of the top first year runners in the region, and Margaret Davis who showed that last track season's successes were definitely carrying over to this fall. Jenny Horowitz, Ginger Polich and Erinn White followed each other to the line to round out the scoring, with Alison Rodriguez and Helen Dole a few steps behind. Annie McNamara and Aparna Nancherla, both returning to XC racing after a year's hiatus got their season started off well.