Men's Cross Country | 10/27/2018 12:17:00 PM

Men's Results | Women's Results

MECHANICSVILLE, Va. – A pair of all-conference performances helped lead the George Mason men's cross country team to its fifth top-five finish in the conference over the last six years.

The Patriots finished fifth at the Atlantic 10 Conference Championships on a rainy and chilly Saturday morning at Pole Green Park. Jonathan Schloth placed ninth and fellow graduate student Trent Lancaster took 12th as Mason registered multiple A-10 All-Conference performers (top 15) for the first time in four years.

Freshman Siobhra O'Flaherty finished 15th to earn all-conference honors as the Mason women placed sixth for their best finish since joining the A-10 in 2013.

Dayton won the men's team title for the third straight year. The Flyers recorded a team score of 72, just edging out La Salle (75). Saint Louis (118) took third and Saint Joseph's (124) placed fourth. The Patriots improved from an eighth-place finish last year – the only time they've failed to finish in the top five since joining the league five years ago.

On the women's side, Richmond won its third championship in four years with a score of 41. Dayton was a distant second with 94. Fordham (150), La Salle (153) and Saint Louis (158) rounded out the top five. Mason improved three spots from last year's ninth-place finish.

"Overall, it was a step forward from last year for both sides," head coach Andrew Gerard said. "The ladies had a nice, tight spread. We were sixth but had a tighter spread than a couple of teams that were ahead of us – by a significant margin… We were 12 points out of third place. I think two steps were possible but we made a step. We are in a good position to hopefully keep building on that. It is progress."

Schloth, a fifth-year senior from East Rockaway, N.Y., ran a time of 25:08.0 on the 5-mile course to earn all-conference honors for the first time. He jumped 20 places over his last 6.4 kilometers. His ninth-place finish was the best by a Mason runner at the A-10 Championships since Steven Flynn won the individual title in 2015.

Lancaster, from Sterling, Va., ran a time of 25:12.4 to finish in the top 15 at the A-10 Championships for the first time as well. He gained 65 spots from the 1.6K mark to the 6.4K mark.

"First time on the podium for both of them. They did a nice job," Gerard said. "They've led us, kind of 1-2, for most of the year. They talked about being in that range and worked to put themselves in that range today. They got out a little conservatively, like we talked, then they moved up nicely and executed real well. They put themselves amongst some of the top guys in the league. That is all we could really ask for. Both fifth-year seniors, both had their best race at their last conference meet. So that was nice. 

Rounding out Mason's top five was junior Thomas Amabile (25:36.9, 28th), junior Ethan Newland (25:45.4, 39th) and graduate student Dustin Jutras (25:53.4, 48th). His brother, Hunter Jutras, a redshirt sophomore was just fractions of a second behind in 49th, also registering a time of 25:53.4.

"The men, we set up a more conservative race plan, help us work toward a tight pack," Gerard said. "I think we had a good, tight pack. We had a couple gaps. We needed to have a four and five packed with Thomas Amabile as our third man. That was possible and that would have been another step. But we were a step forward from where we were last year so that is a good thing."

O'Flaherty led the women for the third straight race. The native of Carlow, Ireland, finished the 5K race in 17:50.4. She reached as high as sixth early in the race and finished steady over the last 1.6 kilometers to notch a top-15 performance.

"She was right behind the young lady (La Salle's Elizabeth Mancini in 14th) who actually was the A-10 Woman's Rookie Outstanding Performer," Gerard said. "She was the No. 2 rookie in the conference, steps behind the top. And eight of the top 11 women in the conference were seniors this year. That bodes well that we have some of the better, younger up-and-coming folks."

Junior Khalilah Hamer wasn't far off, logging a strong performance as she placed 21st. She finished in 17:58.8, climbing 43 spots early in the race. Senior Ciara Donohue was two spots behind in 23rd with a time of 18:03.0. Senior Carolyn Conley placed 50th in 18:34.3 and junior Margaret Morgan rounded out the top five in 54th with a time of 18:38.3.

Both Mason teams now turn their attention to the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships in two weeks on Nov. 9 at the Winthrop Coliseum and Farm in Rock Hill, S.C. Both teams will jump up in distance, with the women running on a 6K course and the men competing on a 8K course.

"It continues to outline what we need to do to move forward," Gerard said. "I think it helps us on both sides that it is a longer race at regionals. I feel like we are a better team at the longer distances than at the shorter distances. So it should be a good springboard for us."