HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College men's cross country team will run in the NCAA Championship for the 22nd straight year this Saturday in Mason, Ohio. The Fords are looking for their seventh consecutive top ten finish and 10th in the last 11 years.
The Fords finished 10th last year's national meet led by Christopher Stadler's 13th place finish. It was Stadler's second consecutive All-American finish as he finished 12th the year before. Haverford won the 2010 NCAA Championship, bringing home the college's first team national championship. The Fords also finished second in the national meet three other times.
Anders Hulleberg '11 won the 2010 national individual crown, becoming the third Fords' runner in the program's history to achieve the mark. Seamus McElligott '91 won the 1990 race while current assistant coach J.B. Haglund '02 raced to the title in 2001.
Junior Charlie Marquardt led the Fords this season, winning the individual titles in the Mideast Regional and Centennial Conference Championship. He became the first runner since Hulleberg '11 in the 2010 season to win back-to-back meets. His achievements led him to being named the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches' Association (USTFCCCA) Mideast Region Runner of the Year.
Senior David Roza set a personal best time (25:06.5) to finish fifth at the Mideast Regional and also placed second at the Centennial Conference Championship. It was the second time that Roza reached All-Region status and the first time that he made the All-Centennial Conference first team. Senior Joel Christian made all-region and All-Centennial Conference first team for the second time in his career.
Junior Nicholas Gandolfo-Lucia was 16th in the conference meet and placed 42nd in the Mideast Regional. Senior Soren Rasmussen won the Centennial Conference Runner of the Week on Oct. 27 and set a new career-best time (25:56.4) to finish sixth at the conference meet. Sophomore Jimmy Gorman was ninth at the Centennial Conference Championship, giving the Fords five runners among the top nine finishers. Sophomore Michael Brier ran to a 17th place finish at the conference meet and was 76th at the regional meet.
The NCAA Championship meet starts at 11 a.m. on Saturday. Fans unable to make Saturday's race can follow along through live results at the top of the page.