Championship Website | Championship Online Store | Championship History | Host Homepage | Live Results
LANCASTER, Pa. - The 27th annual Centennial Conference men's cross country championship is set for Saturday at Gettysburg College. The men's 8,000-meter race will begin at 11 a.m., with the women's 6,000-meter run to follow at 12 p.m.
Five-time defending champion Haverford aims to continue its championship streak, as the Fords look to add to their conference-best 23 team titles. Haverford is ranked 23rd in the most recent USTFCCCA poll, and will face a stiff test from Johns Hopkins, which is ranked No. 5 nationally. Dickinson is also earning recognition in the national rankings at No. 31 entering this weekend's championship.
The 2018 championship meet featured the smallest winning margin in the history of the event, as the Fords (34) held off the Blue Jays (35) by just one point for the team crown. Prior to last fall, the small margin of victory was the five points that separated Johns Hopkins (34) and Dickinson (39) in 2013.
Six of the top 14 runners from last season are back, looking to earn additonal All-Centennial accolades. Johns Hopkins welcomes back three all-conference honorees including two first-teamers - junior Jared Pangallozzi and senior Andrew King - who finished fourth and fifth, respectively, at last year's meet. Pangallozzi is one of just two returning runners with multiple All-Centennial laurels to their names, as he was a second-teamer and Rookie of the Year in 2017. JHU junior Connor Delahanty is also back after earning second team honors last fall.
Dickinson is led by two-time All-CC senior Bryce Descavish, who placed 11th at last year's championship and seventh in 2017. Other returning All-CC runners include Muhlenberg senior Jason Richwall (13th in 2018), Ursinus senior James McDaid (14th in 2018), and Haverford senior Sam McCalpin (10th in 2017).
Additional names to watch on Saturday include Franklin & Marshall freshman David Schwartz, Gettysburg senior Sam Sheldon, McDaniel freshman Jacob Molina, and Swarthmore sophomore Brendan Penfold.
In addition to JHU and Haverford's national rankings, four Centennial teams are currently ranked regionally by the USTFCCCA - Johns Hopkins (2), Haverford (3), Dickinson (4), and Swarthmore (9).