ANNVILLE, Pa. - With four all-MAC finishers returning, the Lebanon Valley College men's and women's cross country teams aim to continue their rise to the top of the conference in 2010.

Under third-season Head Coach James O'Brien '07, the Dutchmen have made dramatic improvements over the past two seasons, culminating in a fourth-place finish for the women and a fifth-place showing for the men at the 2009 Middle Atlantic Conference Championships. That included all-MAC finishers Jenn Cronin (the women's bronze medalist and NCAA regional champion) and Megan Long, along with Brad Sweigart and MAC rookie of the year Matt Nesmith.

LVC begins the season Saturday at the Delaware Valley Invitational, getting a preview of the course that will host MAC Championships in Oct. 30.

MEN
Losing just one runner to graduation, the men's team returns a wealth of experience after fielding a young squad in 2009, and coach O'Brien has added some needed depth to the line-up as well. O'Brien thinks his squad has what it takes to break into the top three in the MAC.

“This should be a strong season for our men's program," O'Brien said. "We're not such a young team anymore and I believe that the collective strengths of this group will allow us to perform well on any type of course that we encounter.”

Leading the way will be Sweigart and Nesmith, both all-MAC finishers last year. Sweigart, the program's lone senior, was the team's most consistant runner in '09, finishing 15th overall at MACs, while Nesmith stepped in as a freshman to provide LVC with a good 1-2 punch, earning MAC Rookie of the Year and regional all-rookie accolades as he finished 16th at MACs and 71st at NCAA Regionals as the team's top finisher.

Sophomore Alex Talarico, a co-captain along with Sweigart, returns after a solid debut season that saw him finish 57th at MACs despite running through a case of mono. Junior Nick D'Angelo came on strong at the end of the 2009 season, finishing 24th at MACs as he was named the team's most improved runner.

An experienced group of underclassmen adds depth, with juniors Adam Abruzzo, Courtland Hoose, Gabriel Lincoln-Decusatis, and Willie Rodriguez joining sophomore Patrick Tierney. In addition, O'Brien welcomes a large class of newcomers, including sophomores John Wallace, a track distance runner, and Colin McKenna, a men's lacrosse player, along with freshmen Chris Black, Elliot Bonds, Stephen Goodman, and Brian Sheehan.

WOMEN
The women's team reached new heights in 2009 with a best-ever fourth-place finish at MAC Championships, and enters 2010 with a preseason regional ranking of #10 by the USTFCCCA, their first such ranking in program history.

Senior Jenn Cronin broke out onto the national scene as she went onto win the NCAA Mid-East Regional meet and become LVC's first-ever female NCAA qualifier. Twice a MAC bronze medalist, Cronin will aim for an outright title and a return to NCAAs. Her co-captain, senior Megan Long, made her cross country debut in 2009 and was outstanding, finishing ninth at MACs and 56th at regionals as a consistant #2 finisher for the Dutchmen.

“Jenn and Megan are arguably the top two female distance runners in school history, and they will set the tone for the rest of the team to follow," O'Brien said. "We have a plethora of talented ladies on the team this year that will look to step up into scoring roles. It will be exciting to see how we stack up against the strong teams like Elizabethtown, Messiah and Misericordia that have held their place atop the conference."

With only three seniors on the roster - Cronin, Long, and Lauren Johnson - the women, like the men's team, also has a large and experienced group of underclassmen to draw from. That includes juniors Brianna Eroh, Tiff Frederick, Katie Sharkey, and Rachel Lindt, along with sophomore Victoria Broderick. A large group of newcomers is also joining the team, with juniors Brittani Bissell and Amanda DeVilliers, sophomore Katelyn Anderson and Kristen Shoop, and  freshmen Cynthia Adams, Alyssa Miller, Kelsey Robinson, and Jordan Zelechoski.