Mountain Hawks Look To Race Past Lafayette On Saturday Morning

Saturday, September 14

Bethlehem, Pa.

10:30 A.M.

Lehigh University

Lafayette

Photo by: Don Paul

Mountain Hawks Look To Race Past Lafayette On Saturday Morning

9/13/2019 10:14:00 AM | Men's Cross Country

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – After two races into the season, the Lehigh men's cross country team is ready to take the next step needed to prepare themselves for the Patriot League Championships. The men host rival Lafayette on Saturday at the Goodman Campus Cross Country Course at 10:30 a.m.

Last weekend, the Mountain Hawks used pack running to preview the Patriot League Championship course as they finished sixth in the Harry Lang Invitational at Colgate. The main purpose of the trip was to preview and get a feel of the terrain so the team can could get acclimated with it.

During the race last weekend, Lehigh had 11 runners cross the finish line within two seconds of each other. Ryan Paradise was the first Brown and White athlete to finish. The senior tallied a time of 21:55.80 for 50th place.

This weekend, Lehigh returns home for "The Rivalry". Over the past 18 years, the Mountain Hawks have gotten the upper hand. Saturday's meeting will be the 92nd meeting between the two schools. Lehigh leads the all-time series 59-32-1.

With the recent success against the Leopards and another competition next week, the Mountain Hawks know they can't overlook the Leopards. "One thing that our team has consistently done is they've always been prepared to race Lafayette, race them really hard," said head coach Todd Etters. "I think there's a little fear that goes with not wanting to be the team that loses to Lafayette."

Not too many teams compete the first four weeks of the season in cross country, however the Mountain Hawks are entering their third straight week getting ready to compete. "I think we're definitely in a routine. It's not common to start a season with these many races. It feels like things are going smoothly and it also feels that we're also building up to bigger and better things." added Etters.

In both races this season, a plethora of Lehigh runners have crossed the finish line close to each other. With these young and energized men, each competition they look to have fun with it. "These guys are competitive people by nature. They have to be confident with how they approach the sport. It doesn't hurt to challenge and push your teammate. That's the fun part about being on a team that has a lot of guys that are pretty equal to each other."

Lehigh will run a good portion of its top runners on Saturday. Fans can expect to see top runners Jeffrey Kirshenbaum, Sean Brown, Kip Yegon, Brad DeMassa and Avery Lederer.

Check back Saturday afternoon to see if the men's cross country team kicked-off the 2019-20 "The Rivalry" with a win.