The 17th-ranked Middlebury men's cross country team finished in a tie for third place at the Connecticut College Invite. The event featured a strong field that included a plethora of nationally-ranked programs. The team title was claimed by #10 St. Olaf with 69 points, Tufts was second with 75 points, while Middlebury and Central (Iowa) tied for third scoring 128 points. Prior to the race, Middlebury honored seniors Peter Burke, Ryan Devine, Alec Gironda, Ryan McNerney and Diego Rey.
 
COURSE INFORMATION

• Location: New London, Conn. (Harkness Memorial State Park)
• Host School: Connecticut College
• Distance: 8 kilometers (8K)
• Weather: Overcast & 60s
• Finish In Blue Race: Tied for 3rd of 26

HIGHLIGHTS

• Gironda was the first Panther to cross the finish line in a race of 209 runners, posting a seventh-place time of 24:43.80.
• The next four Middlebury scorers finished in quick succession. Leading the group was Benjamin Hughes in 28th place (25:06.70), shaving nearly 13 seconds off his season-best time.
• Drew Donahue was less than a second behind Hughes in 29th (25:07.30), while Ziggy Goddard recorded a 30th-place effort (25:10.80).
• Rounding out the top five was Shef West with a career-best time of 25:18.80, good for 35th place.
• Also tallying top-75 efforts for the Panthers was Raymond Pavlik in 60th (25:46.10) and Harry Griff in 73rd (25:54.80). Pavlik's time was a season best by nearly a minute, while Griff's was a personal record by almost 40 seconds.

NOTES

• In the Men's White 8K race, Owen Johnson led the squad to the line. The Middlebury runner placed 11th out of 173 runners in the race. 
• Charles Kessler (41st - 26:54.20) and Frederick Alfonso-Frank (50th - 27:01.60) each recorded top-50 showings. Kessler lowered his personal-best time by more than a minute, while Alfonso-Frank shaved 20 seconds off his personal record.

The Panthers have a week off before running for a conference title in the NESCAC Championship on October 28 at Amherst.