A small contingent of the Dartmouth men's and women's cross-country teams competed at the Purple Valley Classic hosted by Williams College on Saturday, Sept. 27 in Williamstown, Mass.
Fielding its second squad, the Big Green men finished third with 100 points, behind Williams and Amherst, both nationally-ranked in Division III, out of a field of 18 teams. Freshman Ethan Shaw '12 was the top finisher for the Big Green, navigating the eight-kilometer course in a time of 26:25, good enough for second overall.
Another notable finisher for the Big Green was Jake Shoemaker '12, who finished in 17th place after running the course in 27:06. Williams' Edgar Kosgey finished first in the race with a time of 25:48.
The Dartmouth women did not send a full team to the meet in order to focus on upcoming races, including next week's Murray Keatinge Invitational hosted by the University of Maine in Orono, Maine, and the New England Championships in Franklin Park in Boston in two weeks.
As a result of the Big Green's thin numbers in the Williams meet, the Dartmouth runners' times did not factor into the team scoring.
Williams won the meet on the women's side, followed by Middlebury and Amherst.
Dartmouth's Aryn Gruneisen '09 led the Big Green, placing eighth with a time of 23:20 for the six-kilometer course. Running with Gruneisen for Dartmouth were Lauren Campfield '11 and Laura Hempel '12. Campfield placed 24th for Dartmouth in 24:06.
"For the three of us who raced on Saturday at Williams, I can safely say that we all had good races," Gruneisen said in an email. "This is encouraging for upcoming races, especially the New England Championships, which will be the next race our team runs as a whole. Overall, I think the performances bode well for upcoming meets, especially if we continue to improve."
Amherst runner Elise Tropiano won the race on the women's side with a time of 22:00.
Both Dartmouth squads have high hopes for the season. The men's team is coming off a first-place finish at the Dartmouth Invitational a week ago, and both squads participated in pre-season training programs at the College Grant and in Hanover.
"Preseason went very well," men's head coach Barry Harwick '77 said. "[The Grant] is a beautiful place to train and it was a good chance for the team to get together and mentally and physically prepare for the season."
The Big Green men will be led this season by individual favorite Ben True '08, Dartmouth's two-time Ivy League champion and All-American, who did not compete last season for the squad.
Senior captains Glenn Randall '09 and Hari Iyer '09, as well as juniors Kevin Treadway '10, Alex Hall '10 and John Schroeder '10, and sophomores Corey DeWitt '11 and Dwayne Alexis '11, will also be expected to contribute.
Freshman Brad Kenimer '12 had a strong first race for the Big Green at the Dartmouth Invitational, and will be expected to make an impact this season.
"Our expectations for the season are very high," Harwick said. "Although our season is just getting started, we are certainly challenging to win the Ivy League championships. We have an individual favorite in Ben True, and a very strong team behind him."
On the women's side, the Big Green will be looking to seniors Gruneisen and Caitlin Cunningham '09 to lead the team this season. The team also expects significant contributions from junior Ali Smrcina '10, sophomores Nichole Brown '11 and Andrea Nimhof '11, and freshmen Marissa Greco '12 and Lizzie Short '12.
