Men's Cross Country Written by Aaron Thompson, Director of Athletic Communications
GRANVILLE, Ohio – Following a fifth-place performance last fall at the North Coast Athletic Conference Championships, the Denison University men's cross country is scheduled to open its 2024 season this Friday at the Port Kenyon Opener hosted in Gambier, Ohio. The Big Red will be under the direction of Mark FitzPatrick, who begins his 10th season as Head Men's Cross Country Coach at Denison University in 2024-25.
2023 Season In Review: The Big Red finished in fifth place at the annual NCAC Championships, which were hosted at Infirmary Mound Park in Granville. Leading the way at the event was a pair of top 10 finishers. Noah Cyr finished fifth overall at 26:08.0 while Worth Hinshaw placed eighth at 26:19.2. The finish allowed Cyr to earn All-NCAC First Team honors for a second year in a row and a second top five finish. Hinshaw claimed Second Team All-NCAC honors.
Cyr led Denison with a time of 24:57.2 to place 50th in the 278-runner field at the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional Championship.
Cyr earned an individual first place finish at the season-opening Owls Opener hosted by Kenyon. Cyr was the top finisher in all seven events last fall for Denison.
Denison tied for 10th place at a loaded Border Battle event hosted by Rowan in mid-October.
NCAC Preseason Poll:No preseason poll. The conference will release a pre-championship poll just prior to the annual conference championship event.
Team Captains:Nico Martinelli, Declan Toomey
Returners:Cyr returns for his junior season. The Baltimore, Md. nativeis a two-time All-NCAC performer and earned the NCAC Newcomer of the Year award in 2022. Cyr put together a personal best 8K time of 24:57.2 in the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional Championship.
"Noah is a talented runner who is committed to training and the lifestylenecessary for success, in terms of sleep, recovery, and nutrition," Fitzpatrick said. "Noah only ran cross countryin high school because his high school did not have track (he played baseball duringthe spring) so his improvement curve is greater than his peers with more experience. He is always learning about the sport and trying to find ways to gain an edge."
Nico Martinelli, an All-NCAC Third Team pick from 2022, returns for his senior campaign. Martinelli raced to career best times in both the 8K and the 5K last year. He finished amongDenison's top four runners in six of the seven races in 2023.
Another senior, William Allain, returns for the new season. Allain raced five times last fall. He recorded a new career-best 8K time of 26:42.6 at the Rowan Inter-Regional Border Battle.
Oliver DiCerbo, a top 50 scholar-athlete at Denison, ran career best times in both the 8K and 5K events last year.
Declan Toomey returns for his senior season. He raced in all seven events last fall. He put together career best times in both the 8K and 5K events.
In addition, Nathan Bertman, John Platt, Elijah Van Farowe, Drew Carpenter, Cole Clodgo, Jonah Waltz and Leo Wisnefski, all return.
Newcomers: The Big Red welcomes six first-year collegiate athletes to the program.
"We lost five seniors to graduation with three of them being in our top five so we havea bighole to fill," Fitzpatrick said. "Our returners will mostly fill the hole due to their development over the past year but our first-yearteam members will have the opportunity to contribute right away, as well."
NameYr.Hometown / High School
Jacob BrechbillFr.Newark, Ohio / Newark
Jack EvansFr.Bronxville, N.Y. / Millbrook School
Hudson JonesFr.Upper Arlington, Ohio / Upper Arlington
Harrison MonahanFr.Charlotte, N.C. / Providence
Zachary PerlmanFr.New York, N.Y. / Calhoun School
Phinnigan SpindlerFr.Beverly, Ohio / Fort Frye
Looking At The Schedule:
The 2024 season opens the season Friday at the Port Kenyon Opener hosted in Gambier, Ohio. The following week Denison competes at home in the Denison Invitational on Sept. 6. The event is scheduled to be held at Infirmary Mound Park.
Following a weekend off from competition, Denison heads to the John McNichols Invitational in Terre Haute, Ind. On Sept. 21. During the month of October, the Big Red competes at the Ohio Wesleyan Invitational on Oct. 4 and Connecticut College on Oct. 19.
The NCAC Championship will be held at LaVern Gibson Cross Country Course with DePauw University serving as the host for the event on Nov. 3. The NCAA Great Lakes Regional Championship will be hosted in Shelbyville, Ind. at Blue River Park on Nov. 16.
The Final Word From Fitzpatrick: "The team had a good summer of training and they are excited to move on to higher intensity training and racing," Fitzpatrick said. "Over the next two weeks, we will build upon the foundation of our summer training by introducing higher intensitysessions while still emphasizing base work."
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