Lehigh University Athletics
Saturday, September 21
Easton, Pa.
10:45 am
Lehigh University
at
Lafayette
Mountain Hawks aim for ninth straight win over rival Lafayette on Saturday
9/20/2013 10:01:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
Lehigh-Lafayette Rivalry
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh women's cross country team will head to Lafayette this weekend to take on the Leopards in the annual dual meet. The Mountain Hawks will be searching for their ninth straight win over the Leopards on Saturday when the gun goes off at 10:45 a.m.
"We take pride in being one of the first Lehigh sports to go head-to-head against Lafayette," said head coach Debbie Utesch. "We want to try to get the department off to a good start while setting the bar for the year."
The Mountain Hawks won the dual meet 17-46 last year and nine Lehigh runners made up the top 10. The Mountain Hawks return senior Hannah Pierce who finished second last year (22:46), as well as juniors Shannon Nelson (22:47) and Ingrid Simon (22:59) who finished fourth and fifth, respectively. Other significant Lehigh returning runners include sophomore Jennifer Markham (22:59), senior Katherine Howley (23:10) and sophomore Elizabeth Weiler (23:23) who finished sixth through eighth, respectively.
Lehigh's top finisher at the 2013 Lehigh Invitational was senior Rosie Roessel, crossing the line in 22:54 to claim fourth place. Roessel will be looking to ride that momentum into the dual meet with Lafayette, which will serve as her second-ever collegiate race. Roessel spend her first four years at Lehigh as a member of the Mountain Hawk softball team.
The Mountain Hawks captured the Lehigh Invitational title this year with 34 team points for the second time in three years. Lehigh freshman Anne Birkenmaier will also look to impress at Lafayette after finishing sixth (23:28) at the season-opening race.
Lafayette finished third in this year's Lehigh Invitational with a team total of 97 points. The Leopards' Rose Willey crossed the finished line in first place with a time of 22:45, while Lafayette sophomore Stephanie Benko finished in third place (22:46). Willey and Benko were Lafayette's only two runners to finish within the top 20.
"We know that Lafayette has two very good front runners," said Utsech. "We will focus on trying to break them up since they did so well running together at the Lehigh Invitational."
Utesch and the team named their captains on Thursday in hopes of providing solid leadership going into the meet. Seniors Pierce, Howley and Marissa Galante will serve as the 2013 captains.
This will be the first meet for both Lehigh and Lafayette since the season-opening Lehigh Invitational. This Saturday's dual meet will serve as a course preview for Patriot League Championships. The league championship race will be run on Lafayette's course on November 2.
"After the meet we will sit down and talk about the course and what it felt like to race on it," said Utesch. "We'll be reviewing some of the strategic points of the course after this competition as we prepare for the Patriot League Championships in November."
Following the Lehigh-Lafayette dual on Saturday, the Mountain Hawks will return to action when they host the 40th annual Paul Short Run, presented by Asics and Schuylkill Valley Sports. The competition will feature a full day of collegiate and high school races beginning at 10 a.m. on October 5.
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh women's cross country team will head to Lafayette this weekend to take on the Leopards in the annual dual meet. The Mountain Hawks will be searching for their ninth straight win over the Leopards on Saturday when the gun goes off at 10:45 a.m.
"We take pride in being one of the first Lehigh sports to go head-to-head against Lafayette," said head coach Debbie Utesch. "We want to try to get the department off to a good start while setting the bar for the year."
The Mountain Hawks won the dual meet 17-46 last year and nine Lehigh runners made up the top 10. The Mountain Hawks return senior Hannah Pierce who finished second last year (22:46), as well as juniors Shannon Nelson (22:47) and Ingrid Simon (22:59) who finished fourth and fifth, respectively. Other significant Lehigh returning runners include sophomore Jennifer Markham (22:59), senior Katherine Howley (23:10) and sophomore Elizabeth Weiler (23:23) who finished sixth through eighth, respectively.
Lehigh's top finisher at the 2013 Lehigh Invitational was senior Rosie Roessel, crossing the line in 22:54 to claim fourth place. Roessel will be looking to ride that momentum into the dual meet with Lafayette, which will serve as her second-ever collegiate race. Roessel spend her first four years at Lehigh as a member of the Mountain Hawk softball team.
The Mountain Hawks captured the Lehigh Invitational title this year with 34 team points for the second time in three years. Lehigh freshman Anne Birkenmaier will also look to impress at Lafayette after finishing sixth (23:28) at the season-opening race.
Lafayette finished third in this year's Lehigh Invitational with a team total of 97 points. The Leopards' Rose Willey crossed the finished line in first place with a time of 22:45, while Lafayette sophomore Stephanie Benko finished in third place (22:46). Willey and Benko were Lafayette's only two runners to finish within the top 20.
"We know that Lafayette has two very good front runners," said Utsech. "We will focus on trying to break them up since they did so well running together at the Lehigh Invitational."
Utesch and the team named their captains on Thursday in hopes of providing solid leadership going into the meet. Seniors Pierce, Howley and Marissa Galante will serve as the 2013 captains.
This will be the first meet for both Lehigh and Lafayette since the season-opening Lehigh Invitational. This Saturday's dual meet will serve as a course preview for Patriot League Championships. The league championship race will be run on Lafayette's course on November 2.
"After the meet we will sit down and talk about the course and what it felt like to race on it," said Utesch. "We'll be reviewing some of the strategic points of the course after this competition as we prepare for the Patriot League Championships in November."
Following the Lehigh-Lafayette dual on Saturday, the Mountain Hawks will return to action when they host the 40th annual Paul Short Run, presented by Asics and Schuylkill Valley Sports. The competition will feature a full day of collegiate and high school races beginning at 10 a.m. on October 5.
MHT EP5 - Women's Cross Country
Thursday, November 13
Lehigh Sports Central: Women's Cross Country
Wednesday, October 15
2025 Lehigh Women's Cross Country Season Preview
Thursday, August 28
Lehigh Sports Central: Women's Cross Country
Wednesday, October 09
