The Dartmouth cross country team hosted the Dartmouth Invitational this weekend at the Hanover Country Club.
The men's cross country team finished second to Williams College, last year's NCAA Division III National Champion scoring 35 points to William's low of 29.
"We were fairly satisfied, but we would have liked to have won," men's cross country Coach Barry Harwick said. "It's a good start but it's not where we want to be at the end of the season."
Individually, co-Captain Jack Dwyer '96earned first place with a time of 25:17. Dan Conrad '99 also ran a great race, finishing in the best time by a Dartmouth freshman ever on home courts, Harwick said.
Senior co-Captain Chris Langan placed sixth, just 10 seconds out of third place. Aaron Schumacher '98, who was the first Ivy League finisher at last year's Heptagonals, came in one second behind Langan. Jim Gerhart '98 placed tenth, and 1994 Missouri high school cross country champion Don Conrad '99 ran 11th.
Harwick hopes the team will peak later in the season to defend their title as the Heptagonals, the race which determines the Ivy League champions.
"Most runners do better in the second race," Harwick said. "In the second race, they should be able to pace themselves better." The women's cross country team captured first place in the Invitational. The team won with 15 points compared to second place Brandeis's 58.
Kristin Manwaring '96 and Maribel Sanchez '96 finished in first place, both with a time of 19:39.
"Only one person has broken 20 minutes in the past five years," women's cross country Coach Ellen O'Neil said. "In this race, four people ran under 20 minutes. We're off to the best start we ever had."
Emily Hodgson '98, who was injured last season, ran a strong race, finishing in third place. Kristin Pierce '96 finished fourth. Freshmen Helena Kimball '99 and Beth Crenshaw '99 also look promising.
"There was only a nine second difference between the first and fourth runner," O'Neil said. "We have to work on bridging the gap between our fifth and sixth runners."
Both teams will run at the Boston Invitational this weekend.
