(ANTIGONISH, NS) For the second weekend in a row, the UNB Reds men’s cross country team enjoyed a pair of top six finishes.
UNB’s Michael Colford (Fredericton, NB) finished third in Saturday’s St FX Invitational, in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, while teammate Isaac Cull (Pubnico, NS) was fourth.
“Mike and Isaac are running well right now,” said Reds head coach Chris Belof. “We are headed to the point in the season where they’ll get a bit more rest between races and that should make for some very interesting results.”
In last weekend’s Atlantic University Sport cross country season-opener, Cull finished fifth while Colford ran sixth.
On Saturday, Colford finished the eight kilometre event behind winner Alex Neuffer and Paul MacLellan, both of St FX. Colford crossed the line 62 seconds back of Neuffer.
In a sprint to the finish line for third place, Colford beat Cull by just two-tenths of a second.
“Back to back weekends are tough,” said Belof. “That makes this weekend’s results even more impressive. The men’s group looked composed and progressed through the race quite well.”
Other Reds finishers in the men’s race were Dawson Nancekievill (Somerville, NB), in 14th, and Ian Verschoor (Berwick, NB), in 15th.
In the women’s six kilometre race, Acadia’s Katie Robinson took first place.
The top Reds runner was Hannah Cormier (Fredericton, NB). She finished in 14th place in a field of 42.
“Hannah had a strong run and is really starting to come into her own,” said Belof. “She has progressed well and we’ll be looking for her to continue to improve throughout the latter part of the season.”
“She’s a real talent,” said Belof, of Cormier. “She works hard. This season is really only the beginning.”
Emma Towers (Upper Gagetown, NB) was 28th.
The next event on the AUS cross country schedule is the UNB/STU interlock meet. It will be held Saturday, October 6th, at Fredericton’s O’Dell Park. AUS schools will compete along with teams from RSEQ (Quebec) schools.
The women’s race will begin at 12:00pm. The men’s race goes at 12:45pm.
RECAP: With files from St FX Athletics
PHOTOS: Bryan Kennedy/for St FX Athletics