LAKEWOOD, NJ (Oct. 24, 2024) - It's championship season for Georgian Court Cross Country! They'll be the first Georgian Court teams this year to compete for a CACC Championship. 

When
Sunday, Oct. 27 - 9 a.m.
Men's Race - 9 a.m.
Women's Race - 10 a.m.

Where
Philadelphia, Pa. - Belmont Plateau

Distance
Men - 8K (Map)
Women - 5K (Map)

CACC Championship History   
• Since the year 2000, Georgian Court women have won six Cross Country Championships. Those came in 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2007.
• The men hoisted their first trophy in 2022.
• The men's trophy was also the first for Head Coach Mike Murawski in cross country.
• Since 2000, only five men's teams and four women's teams have won team titles. For the women, Jefferson leads the way with 13 championships, including eight of the last nine. 
• The Felician men have won the most championships with nine, followed by Wilmington with seven. 

Last Year's CACC Championship
• Georgian Court's men finished in second place last year, giving them top-two finishes in back-to-back years.
• Three Lions, Xavier Seals, Kyle Spector and Alec Valle earned All-CACC for the men.
• Amirah Beasley was an All-Conference member after finishing in 10th place.
• The Lion women finished in seventh place as a team. 

Last Time Out
• Georgian Court competed in their sixth race of the season last weekend at the Rowan Border Battle.
• The men had a seventh place team finish among 21 teams. 
• Nolan Kus finished in 10th place overall running 26:21.8 which earned him CACC Runner of the Week honors.
• The women had a 10th place team finish led by Amirah Beasley placing 20th overall.
• Beasley had a season-best time for the 6K and Samantha Lonseth ran a new personal-best. 

Lions This Season
• This year, Georgian Court has competed in six races, starting off the year with three races in a 13-day span.
• Both the men's and women's teams are filled with new faces. Of the seven that have raced for the men this year, just two are returners. The women returned three of their seven that have toed the line.
• There are have strong improvements from all individuals this season. Graduate student transfer Nolan Kus has led the GCU men in each race and has four top-10 finishes and three in the top-five.
• Ryan Pettrow and Joe Jamolawicz have been steady behind Kus. Pettrow has set personal-bests in each of the last two races.
• After those three have been four freshmen. Colin Broadbelt, Luke McCormick, Matthew Schaub and Zachary Spoonire have all dropped their times below 30 minutes this season for the 8K distance.
• Amirah Beasley has led the Lion women in all six races. She's set season-best times in the 5K and 6K in each of the last two races.
• Madalin Jones has been steadily behind Beasley and dropped her times at both the 5K and 6K distances. 
• GCU has gotten a boon from Samantha Lonseth who, aside from Beasley, is the only other Lion to compete in all six races. She's made big strides in her first cross country season.
• Late season additions Kerry Ann Hohenshilt and Julisa Ponce Sanchez have helped out, along with Jurnee Tuttle who has returned after missing three races. 
• Brenna Sullivan has raced three times and finished in second or third each time for the Lions. 

Georgian Court vs. the CACC
• Georgian Court hasn't seen much CACC competition this season. They've gone up against a handful of teams, but nothing too extensive.
• GCU has finished ahead of teams such as Holy Family, Felician, Chestnut Hill, Dominican and Goldey-Beacom this season. 

About the Meet
• The CACC does things a little differently. They are one of the only conferences that allow just seven per team to race.
• They are also one of the only conferences where the women race at the 5K distance. 
• The course has a mix of grass, trails and challenging hills.