M. Cross Country: Quakers' harriers place fourth

NEW YORK - Packing their second through fifth runners between the 21st and 27th final positions was key to the fourth-place overall finish of the men's cross country team at the Heptagonal Championships at Van Cortlandt Park on Friday. "No one was expecting much from us - except for ourselves," Penn coach Charlie Powell said. The Quakers' fourth-place finish was impressive, considering that the team lost three of its top runners last year. Younger runners stepped up for the Red and Blue and filled those vacant spots. Their performance was solid, and everything went according to Powell's plans. The team only slipped one place back from its third-place finish last year, yet Powell had thought that a third- place finish was possible. "We wanted our pack to be up with the front pack and we achieved this," senior Courtney Jaworski said. Jaworski, Penn's top finisher, came in ninth overall with a time of 23:03.4. His finish earned him second team All-Ivy honors. Following him was the tight pack of Quakers consisting of Breton Bonnette, Brian Goldberg, Brian Trembley and Ian Foley, who all came within nine seconds of each other. The Quakers were able to bring a younger, more inexperienced squad to the meet. Trembley was one of the Quakers' freshmen who was vital to their overall finish. "We really ran the first mile well, but then Dartmouth really rocked us on the back hills," Jaworski said. The Dartmouth men easily took the title, with their scoring runners all finishing in the top 12. Dartmouth's Ben True took the individual title, passing second-place finisher Owen Washburn of Brown on the home stretch. Princeton took second place at the championships while Brown finished one spot ahead of the Quakers. "Overall, it was a spirited and strong race," Powell said. ______________________________________ Top Heps finishers (1) Ben True,Dartmout - 24:36.2 (2) Owen Washburn, Brown - 24:38.3 (3) Frank Macreary, Princeton - 24:39.4 (9) Courtney Jaworski, PENN - 25:03.4 (21) Breton Bonnette, PENN - 25:24.1 (22) Brian Goldberg, PENN - 25:24.3 (24) Brian Trembley, PENN - 25:28.5 (27) Ian Foley, PENN - 25:33.0