M. X-Country runs by Navy

The Quakers were fourth at Penn State, beating their rival in the process. The Penn men's cross country team once again proved the time-honored adage that Penn is not Penn State. This past Saturday, the Quakers travelled to Happy Valley and outperformed the Nittany Lions and seven other squads by earning fourth place in the Penn State Invitational. In the process, Penn defeated Heptagonal rival Navy for the first time in 1998 and encouraged hope for the crucial three remaining meets of the season. "We felt good after the race," Penn junior captain Scott Clayton said. "I think we're in much better position than we were a few weeks ago." Junior Sean MacMillan galvanized the Quakers' effort. He was third in the entire race, navigating the 5.2-mile course in 25:58. He was once again Penn's top finisher, and has led the team in each of the four meets of the season. "Sean's legs weren't even feeling as good as they were last week," Penn coach Charlie Powell said. "He still managed to put in a really solid performance." Clayton was impressive with an 11th place finish and a time of 26:17. Sophomore Bryan Kovalsky crossed the line 17th with a solid 26:33. Matt Lane of William and Mary, a top-20 finisher at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in 1997 and this weekend's winner, was one of only two competitors to get the best of MacMillan. "The only other guy to beat me was an unattached runner. He must have been 30 years old," MacMillan said. "I think I have a decent shot to win Heps right now." MacMillan has good reason for enthusiasm. He defeated all the runners that Dartmouth, Navy and West Virginia have to offer. "He's just getting to it. He's bound to be one of the favorites at the Heptagonal Championships," Powell said. The Quakers headed into Saturday with the expressed purpose of besting Navy and Dartmouth. They were partially successful. Penn defeated the Midshipmen 105 to 108. Dartmouth, however, overpowered the Quakers by 46 points. "Beating Navy makes us feel like we can take on teams in the upper level of our conference," Clayton said. Dartmouth's sizable margin of victory over the Quakers is misleading since injuries plagued Penn. "If it weren't for the injuries to Jason Greene and Matt Gioffre, we would have been about 15 points behind Dartmouth," MacMillan said. Greene failed to finish the race due to a nagging sprained ankle. His personal best at the Paul Short Invitational last week was integral to the Penn effort. Freshman Gioffre, who also set a personal record one week ago, was hampered by sore calves and finished a good distance in back of junior Mark Granshaw. "I realize that I need to step up and be a more solid fifth man," Gioffre said. "My calves were bothering me, but I need to improve on this race." Improvement over this weekend is still a very real possibility. Sophomore Bryan Kovalsky, who was voted top freshman at the Heptagonal Championships last year, has yet to string together an excellent race. "Kovalsky's upset about some of his race tactics. He's still pretty disappointed," Clayton said. If Kovalsky is able to put together a stellar race and both Gioffre and Greene are healthy, the Quakers can significantly better Saturday's result. Now is the time of the season for the Quakers to begin to run on all cylinders. Looming in the near future are the Heptagonal Championships on October 30 and the District Championships on November 14. Nine or 10 members of the Penn squad will board a flight early Friday bound for Eugene, Ore., and the Oregon Invitational. This meet will pit the Quakers against nationally elite teams which they do not normally face. "It'll be a nice change," Clayton said. "We'll be able to see where we are against some really great teams." The Quakers' practice schedule will begin with a long, moderately paced run on Monday. Tuesday will see an intense speed-oriented workout followed by relatively short workouts to end the week.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.