Newcomer Oneda shines for women runners

This past Saturday, the 26th ranked men’s cross country team participated in the Navy Invitational in Annapolis, MD. As the only Division III competitor, Hopkins took fourth place out of seven schools with 104 points, finishing ahead of neighboring schools UMBC and Loyola University. Navy finished on top winning the team title with thirty-four points. American University finished in second with Malone University taking third place. Navy and American got out to a fast start, but the Blue Jays were able to stay close to them, with the vast majority of the runners keeping a 4:55 pace on the first mile. Unfortunately, they slowed during the second mile and all but one Blue Jay fell behind. Standout junior Max Robinson finished ninth overall and first for the Blue Jays with a time of 25:22. Sophomore Austin Stecklair finished 16th overall with a time of 25:53. The top six for the Blue Jays was rounded out by senior Josh Baker, juniors Julian Saliani and Ryan Alvarez, and sophomore Andrew Ceruzzi who all finished within 17 seconds of each other. After cruising to an easy first place finish two weeks ago at the Baltimore Metro Invitational, this meet was a solid measuring stick for the Blue Jays to see where they stand at this point in the season. Hopkins’s next competition will be the famous Paul Short Invitational at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa. in two weeks on Sept.28. The women’s team also competed this past saturday in the Salty Dog Invitational in Annapolis, Md. They took second place overall behind Navy and ahead of Division I programs from the University of Maryland, Loyola, George Washington University, and UMBC. The Blue Jays were headed by the freshman phenom, Hannah Oneda, who finished first overall in the 6K race with a time of 21:50. A testament of her recent dominance, this was her second first place finish in as many meets. Junior Holly Clarke stressed the importance of Oneda’s skill set, “We lost our top runner from last year, Hannah Eckstein, who transferred to Notre Dame. But, this year we’ve found her replacement, another Hannah (Oneda) who is just as fast as the old one.” Keeping pace with the front, Oneda fell behind two Navy runners in the second mile. Yet, she pulled ahead in the final mile and kept her pace going down the home stretch to take first place by two seconds. Hopkins was also headed by juniors Clarke and Lara Shegoski. Clarke and Shegoski kept pace at the front of the pack with Navy’s top three runners throughout the entire race. Clarke finished fourth overall with a time of 22:10 and Shegoski finished eighth with a time of 22:57. Hopkins was also led by senior Annie Monagle, who finished 12th overall with a personal record time of 23:05. As the national qualifier in the 800-meter outdoor event, Monagle used her experience to race a strong finish and pass Maryland and Loyola’s number two runners. Sophomore Ashley Murphy rounded out the top five for Hopkins with a finish time of 23:23. Sophomore Lindsey Sanborn and freshmen Sophia Meehan and Courtney Kelly had gritty performances as well. When questioned about the difference between last year’s team and this year’s team, Clarke responded, “Last year we thought we were a young team, but this year we’re even younger. Our depth has grown significantly with the talent of the new freshmen and sophomores.” Hopkins will compete in the Paul Short Invitational in two weeks against several top ranked Division I programs including Georgetown University, Villanova University, and the University of Tennessee. The teams are excited for the challenge. “I’m excited for Paul Short because we get to race the top Division I programs in the nation and it really puts into perspective how good our team is even though we’re Division III,” said Clarke. “I’m hoping we can contend with the Ivys, especially Brown and Harvard. “It’s also nice to see where we individually match up to these Division I runners. If Hannah and I work together I think we could easily place in the top 100. It’s a huge race, but our girls, as young as they are, know who to race with and how to race smartly. We placed 29th as a team last year and I’m looking for a top 20 finish this year.” Clarke’s ambition bodes well for a young team looking to climb the national D-III rankings. Currently sitting at sixth overall in the latest United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, Hopkins could jump if Clarke and the Blue Jays can deliver against difficult competition at the Paul Short Invitational