This past weekend, both the men’s and women’s cross-country teams got the opportunity to compete in the Codfish Bowl Invitational. Despite some great individual performances, neither the men’s nor women’s teams were able to finish in first place. Let’s take a look at how everything shaped out at the invitational.
Men’s Cross-Country
The UMass Boston men’s cross-country team finished in second place out of two teams at the Codfish Bowl Invitational. Even though the team as a whole came in second place, senior Jimmy Cannon continued his long stretch of dominance coming in first with the fastest time out of everyone competing at the invitational. Freshman Nathan Cournoyer also had a top ten finish, finishing in sixth place overall and the second Beacon to cross the finish line.
The Beacons as a whole may have had a relatively rough outing, but Cannon seems to continue to shine, as he has been on fire all season long. This week Cannon earned his third Little East Conference runner of the week honor for this season alone! At the Codfish Bowl Invitational, Cannon finished three minutes faster than the runner that finished in second place. If that doesn’t spell pure dominance, I do not know what does.
As for the rest of the team, freshman Cournoyer showed supporters that the future is bright for UMass Boston cross-country as he was able to finish in sixth place. The third Beacon to cross the finish line was yet another freshman, Will Powell, who finished eleventh overall in the competition. Seeing finishes like this out of freshmen is an encouraging sign for the future of UMass Boston men’s cross-country.
Women’s Cross-Country
The women’s cross-country team ended up finishing in second place out of three teams at the Codfish Bowl Invitational. Freshman Grace Colon had a great outing with a top five finish, followed by freshman Violeta Foster and junior Mara Bartel who both finished top ten at the invitational.
Something very important to note about the UMass Boston women’s cross-country squad is that there are no seniors on the team. That means aside from the juniors on the team, no other runner has had experience at the college level up to this point due to Covid. Although the lack of experience may hinder the team’s success right now, the fact that no runner will be graduating this year bodes well for the future. Another important detail to note is that the two runners who led the Beacons at the Codfish Bowl Invitational, Grace Colon and Violeta Foster, are both freshmen. So, it is safe to say that the future of women’s cross-country at UMass Boston is undeniably bright.
What’s Next?
Both the men’s and women’s cross-country teams will have another week to prepare for their next invitational, the James Earley Invitational, which will take place in Westfield, Mass. on Oct. 9 at 10:30 a.m. We will be able to find out if the UMass Boston women’s cross-country can continue to improve, and we will see if Jimmy Cannon can continue his dominance for the men’s cross-country squad as well. It will be very interesting to see how both the men and women’s cross-country teams look in a year or two when the freshmen who are already making an impact get a couple years of college experience under their belt.