Mountain Hawks making noise on the trail

Bethlehem, PA – Following a strong showing at the Paul Short Run by both the men and the women over the weekend, the Lehigh cross country teams are moving up in the regional rankings and beginning to earn respect. The men, who finished in 11th place at the Paul Short Run, cracked the top-ten in the Mid-Atlantic Region for the first time this season, while the women placed 18th at the Paul Short Run and have slid into the 15th spot in the rankings. The women had not been ranked for the past two seasons prior to this latest appearance.

Head Coach Debbie Utesch, in her eighth season at the helm, is excited for both the men and the women and pleased to see all of their hard work pay off. “This is the first time that the men have ever cracked the top-ten and the highest they have ever been ranked in my time here,” explains Utesch. “Our performance at Paul Short showed what we are capable of doing. The guys have been working extremely hard all season, so this is nice for them to garner some respect. It should make them even hungrier for the rest of the season.”

As for the women, Utesch is glad to see the Mountain Hawks return to the rankings following a two-year absence. “We hadn’t been ranked in the last two seasons, so following our performance this past weekend (at Paul Short) where we were able to beat some teams in our region, it’s nice to see us slide into that 15th spot.” Utesch continues, “This should bolster the women’s confidence and allow us to ride the momentum out for the rest of the season.”

Lehigh returns to action on Friday evening, when the Mountain Hawks travel to Lewisburg, to compete in the Gulden Invitational. The women will get things started at 5:00, with the men’s race to follow at 5:45.

Completed Event: Cross Country at NCAA Mid-Atlantic Qualifiers on November 14, 2009 , , Men: 15 of 28<br> Women: 16 of 27

Completed Event: Cross Country at Patriot League Championship on October 31, 2009 , , Men: 4 of 8<br>Women:7 of 8

Completed Event: Cross Country at Lafayette Invite on October 17, 2009 , , Men: 2 of 12<br>Women: 4 of 9

Cancelled Event: Cross Country at Penn State National Invite

Completed Event: Cross Country versus Lehigh Paul Short Run on October 2, 2009 , , Men - 32 of 42<br>Women - 30 of 40

Completed Event: Cross Country at Lafayette on September 19, 2009 , , Men: Won 19-44<br>Women: Won 28-31

Completed Event: Cross Country versus Lehigh Valley Championship on September 4, 2009 , , Men: 1 of 5<br>Women: 1 of 7

Lehigh University Athletics

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