The Lancaster Bible College Men's & Women's Cross-Country teams released its 2023 schedule with high expectations for this upcoming season. After a strong end to the regular season last year, the teams will look to use that momentum in the new year with a mix of familiar faces and new recruits. The schedule features six regular season meets including the United East Conference Preview hosted by Cairn which will also host the conference championship on October 28.
Season in Review: The men's team, led by junior
Mitchell Gray, had a great year, faring well in both the United East as well as the NCAA post-season. Perhaps the best finish of the year was at their own Charger Invite on September 16 as they finished first overall out of the nine competing teams, with three members finishing in the top ten:
Mitchell Gray (1
st),
Daniel Lefko (6
th), and
Adam Horning (8
th). At the United East Conference Championship, the Chargers placed 4
th overall, including a first-place finish from Gray and an eighth-place finish for Horning. And at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Region Championships, the Chargers placed 24
th out of 32 teams.
Junior
Mitchell Gray put together an outstanding 2022 campaign, which featured the United East Cross-Country Runner of the Year, NCAA Division III All-Region Team, and part of the All-Academic Team. Joining Gray was teammate
Adam Horning, who nabbed 2
nd Team All-Conference after an 8
th place finish in the championships. Junior
Alex McWilliams was named the United East Elite 14 Award recipient for both his athletic and academic achievements.
On the women's side, there were many great individual improvements as
Dana Keller,
Lydia Rendon, and
Jurnee Acosta consistently put in their best effort. One of the best performances of the year was at the Cairn Invitational where Keller not only placed second overall, but Rendon and Acosta also set personal bests for the course. The women placed 3
rd overall at the United East Championships. Keller, who continued to rise to the occasion throughout the year, finished 4
th overall at the Championships, landing on the United East All-Conference First Team while also being named the United East Rookie of the Year.
A Look Ahead: Both programs will kick-off the season heading to Baltimore, Md. where they will be competing in the Goucher Twilight Meet on September 1. The Goucher meet will be followed by an important United East Conference Preview race hosted by Cairn on September 16. On September 22, the Chargers are hosting a Red & White Alumni Invite in honor of homecoming week.
The Chargers will then travel to the last three regular season meets at the Paul Short Invite hosted by Lehigh (Sept. 29), Dickinson Long-Short Invitational (Oct. 7), and the LVC Last Chance Invitational (Oct. 20) at Lebanon Valley. The men and women will compete for a conference championship at Cairn on October 28 followed by the NCAA Mid-East Regional held at Lock Haven on November 11.
Men's Full Schedule
Women's Full Schedule
