WASHINGTON – Georgetown University's women's cross-country team won the BIG EAST Championship for the fifth consecutive season. No. 9 Georgetown now joins Villanova as the only team to have achieved this feat (1989-94). Chloe Scrimgeour led the way for the women, placing third in the field and first among the Hoyas. The men finished third out of nine teams.

ON THE RECORD

"What an amazing day for our Hoyas. Winning a Cross Country Championship is no easy feat in the Big East Conference and to have our women do that for a 5th consecutive time is an immense accomplishment. It was truly a team effort by our women to come away with a close win. Our men competed hard to finish 3rd. I must mention the effort by Abel Teffra who recovered from a spill to get back up and finish 9th overall. I am proud of the performance of both teams and look forward to seeing them back in action in two weeks competing at the Mid-Atlantic Regional XC Championships." - Director of Cross Country Alton McKenzie


"Separate from it being the University's 5th straight, today's win was about as complete a program effort as I can imagine. Alumni were everywhere cheering in their era's team gear, parents fully stocked a tent for post-race nourishment, and non-racing members of the Cross Country and Track teams were volunteering all over the venue from helping spectators park to keeping the racers on the course. The racers themselves checked every box of a championship effort, which is a testament to the values instilled in them by our alumni: they fought for every spot, and in the end, it was our 6th and 7th runners who did not get to contribute to our team score but who by their efforts pushed back the finishing place of Providence's 5th runner that ultimately added the two critical points to their team score. This swung the race from a 1-point loss to a one-point win. That it was our non-scoring athletes that made a critical difference in the win." - Women's Cross Country Head Coach Mitchell Baker
 

"I thought once again that James Dunne, Abel Teffra, and Luke Ondracek executed excellent races. As much as I would like to praise individuals, this is a team sport, and we were not good enough today. I have the utmost respect for Villanova and Butler. They ran great today. We did not. We need to be better and I'm confident that we will be soon." - Head Men's Cross Country Coach Brandon Bonsey

NO. 9 WOMEN WIN THEIR FIFTH TITLE IN A ROW (1st, 42 POINTS) – 6,000 METERS

·       The Hoyas won their fifth straight BIG EAST title, defending the championship trophy on the Hilltop for another year.
·       Georgetown is the second program in the history of the BIG EAST to win five straight titles. The other was Villanova from 1989-94.
·       Chloe Scrimgeour finished third overall with a time of 19:53.12. This is the second consecutive year Scrimgeour made First Team All-BIG EAST.
·       Lucy Jenks placed fifth, two spots behind Scrimgeour with a 19:59.30 finish.
·       The Hoyas had three runners finish within the top ten and eight runners finish within the top 20. The Hoyas were able to take home the title by one point.
·       GU Point Scorers: 1. Chloe Scrimgeour  19:53.12 (3rd), 2. Lucy Jenks 19:59.30 (5th), 3. Melissa Riggins 20:09.08 (7th), 4. Barrett Justema 20:48.02 (13), 5. Charlotte Tomkinson 20:49.86 (14)
·       BIG EAST Team Results: 1. No. 9 Georgetown (42); 2. No. 12 Providence (43); 3. Connecticut (73); 4. No. 27 Villanova (77); 5. Butler (152); 6. DePaul (201); 7. Xavier (211); 8. Creighton (244); 9. Seton Hall (286); 10. Marquette (287); 11. St. John's (321)
·       All-BIG EAST First Team:  Chloe Scrimgeour, Lucy Jenks, Melissa Riggins
·       All-BIG EAST Second Team: Barrett Justema, Charlotte Tomkinson, Olivia Morganti (15th), Fiona Max (16th), Ruth Nerurkar (17th)

NO. 21 MEN (3rd, 70 POINTS) – 8,000 METERS
·       The men had a strong showing, finishing third behind champions No. 17 Villanova and second-place No. 27 Butler.
·       James Dunne led the way for the Blue & Gray, finishing fifth with a 24:04.01 finish.
·       GU Point Scorers: 1. James Dunne 24:04.01 (5th), 2. Abel Teffra 24:08.40 (9th), 3. Luke Ondracek24:19.88 (14th), 4. Birhanu Harriman 25:54.43 (19th), 5. Derek Fearon 25:01.98 (23rd)
·       BIG EAST Team Results: 1. Villanova (35); 2. Butler (41); 3. Georgetown (70); 4. Providence (95); 5. Xavier (164); 6. Creighton (169); 7. DePaul (170); 8. Seton Hall (254); 9. Marquette (271)
·       All-BIG EAST First Team: James Dunne, Abel Teffra
·       All-BIG EAST Second Team: Luke Ondracek, Birhanu Harriman
 
UP NEXT
Both teams will travel to State College, Pennsylvania on November 15 for the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regionals.