Truro, NS - The Crandall Chargers men's and women's cross country teams concluded their regular season on Saturday, racing ACAA Meet #3 hosted by Dalhousie Agricultural Campus. The course at Victoria Park was familiar to returning athletes, who contested the course at both last year's conference and national championships. The rain held-off long enough for the races to run under cloudy skies, and Chargers made the most of it, taking individual wins in both the men's and women's races.
In the women's 6K race, Laura Fonseca claimed her first win of the season, crossing the line 1st with a time of 26:30. Lydia MacArthur climbed onto the podium for the first time this season, placing 3rd in 28:33, while Lydia Bodechon placed top-10 for her second consecutive meet, crossing the line 9th in 31:02.
The Chargers rested their fourth runner this meet, and so did not appear in the women's team standings. The Dalhousie Rams won the women's team title with a score of 20, while Mount Allison Mounties and the Mount Saint Vincent Mystics finished second and third with point totals of 25 and 33, respectively.
In the men's 8K race, Luke Purdy recorded his first win of the season, stopping the clock in 28:26, and followed close-behind Jackson Culberson, who placed 2nd with a time of 28:36. Luc Blanchette placed 4th with a time of 30:12, while Declan Andrews rounded-out the team scoring with a 7th place finish in 31:10. Justin Reimer placed 16th with a time of 34:18.
The Chargers won the men's team title with a score of 14. The Mount Allison Mounties finished second with 25 points, while the Mount Saint Vincent Mystics placed third with 55 points.
"Great results all around," said Head Coach Brandon LeBlanc. "Our men are staying steady at the top and making improvements along the way, while our women continue their trend of steady improvement and fighting for positioning. It was a good day, and it's been a good regular season."
The Chargers closed-out the regular season in excellent standing. As a team, the men will enter into the championships undefeated, and individually claimed six of the nine podium positions across the three regular season races. The women secured one team victory, and individually claimed four of the nine podium positions across the three regular season meets. Both teams are currently ranked 10th in the CCAA.
"Now, we'll be focused on carrying that momentum into the championships portion of our season," added LeBlanc.
The Chargers will race in the ACAA Cross Country Championships on October 26th, hosted by Holland College in Brookvale, PE.