LOGAN TOWNSHIP, NJ (Oct. 17, 2026) - For the first time this season, there was a different runner who led the pack for Georgian Court Cross Country for both the men and the women.

The Lions raced Saturday afternoon at the Rowan Border Battle at DREAM Park in Logan Township, NJ. It was a chilly morning following periods of rain last night which made for sloppy conditions. The Lions also competed in the third and fourth races of the day, which meant the terrain was already a bit chewed up.

The meet is split into a Division III Championship race and an open race. Georgian Court competed in the open race and the women finished in second place among seven teams. Sophia Mauro made her way into the top-10 with a seventh place finish. It was the Lions first 6K race of the season and Mauro crossed the line in 26:49.7. Finishing just outside the top-10 was Dori O'Halloran in 11th place with her time of 27:03.8. O'Halloran and Nena Menard each ran their first collegiate 6K race. Menard took 23rd place finishing in 28:18.3.

The scoring was completed for the Lions by Azucena Martinez-Panesso and Nora Sprunger who finished back-to-back in 39th and 40th place. Martinez-Panesso, also running her first collegiate 6K ran 30:04.7 while Sprunger was three seconds behind her in 30:07.0. Julisa Sanchez Ponce was the Lions final finisher. She placed 82nd running 41:46.1.

GCU scored 50 points and finished second behind Salisbury who won the meet with 26 points. Sophia Prior of Community College of Baltimore County - Essix was the individual winner running 25:53.1. 

For the Lion men it was Richard Riopel who paced Georgian Court. He snuck into the top-10 with a 10th place finish in the 8K race running 29:44.9. Not far behind were Ryan Pettrow and Zachary Spoonire in 19th and 20th place. Pettrow ran 30:04.3 while Spoonire was at 30:06.1. They didn't run together from the start, but found each other at the end. Spoonire was 15 spots behind Pettrow at the one mile split. Pettrow climbed nine spots over the rest of the race while Spoonire passed 23. 

The final three Lions were all spread out. Luke McCormick finished in 32nd place. He ran 31:10.3 and made up some ground between miles one and three, moving up 13 spots. Colin Broadbelt ran 32:43.2 for 56th place. Stephen Lane finished in 82nd place running 36:05.3. 

The Lions finished in fifth place with 114 points. Rowan won the team championship scoring 19. They had places 1-4 with Patrick Palma winning the race in 28:40.5. 

Georgian Court has one meet left before the CACC Championship race. They'll be on Long Island next Friday, Oct. 23, for the Adelphi Short Course Showdown in Bethpage, NY.