Haverford at the Centennial Conference Championships
HAVERFORD, Pa. - The Haverford College men's and women's cross country teams will head to the Centennial Conference Championships in Suburban Baltimore on Saturday, hungry to chase down a Centennial Conference title. The meet will be held at the Baltimore County Agricultural Center in Cockeysville, Maryland, with Johns Hopkins hosting the meet.
The men's 8K championship race will get things started at 11 a.m. before the women's 6K championship takes place at noon. The combined men's and women's open race is slated to follow the two championship races at approximately 12:45 p.m. to wrap up the day of racing.
The men's meet features three ranked squads in No. 21 Johns Hopkins, No. 22 Haverford, and No. 35 Dickinson. Haverford, the top squad in the Metro Region, will be looking to chase down the conference title for the first time since the 2018 campaign, as that championship was the last of five in a row for Haverford before the Blue Jays of Johns Hopkins snuck past the Fords for the 2019 title. The Fords have established a sustained run of success in the postseason races, as Haverford enters the postseason looking for a 28th straight trip to the NCAA Division III National Championship meet. Haverford has won 23 of the total 27 Centennial Conference crowns.
A few Haverford entrants that 2019 CC championship race, including the Centennial Conference Rookie of the Year that season, top finisher Ryan Kredell, will return for the 2021 version. Aaron Bratt, Max Brelig, Peter Buckley, and Nico Tripeny all bring a wealth of experience in postseason races to the table. The Fords had a great opportunity to prove their mettle against No. 20 Johns Hopkins at the Rowan Border Battle earlier this season. The then-22nd-ranked Fords came out strong in that race with Brelig and Kredell both finishing above the top finisher from Johns Hopkins. 2018 Cross Country Rookie of the Year Jamie Moreland and newcomer Miles Colescott both also impressed in that race, as Amos Karlsen and Charlie Ferguson also were part of the Haverford scorers with top 60 finishes.
Johns Hopkins finished just one point ahead of Haverford for third, as the Fords took fourth in a loaded field, setting up a showdown in the Centennial Conference championships. Dickinson was also an impressive performer in that Rowan meet, and cannot be counted out to surprise in Saturday's action.
Following the conference meet, Haverford will head to the NCAA Metro Regional back at Rowan on November 13. The men's race is slated to begin at 11 a.m. as the Fords will look to punch a return ticket to nationals by virtue of a top two finish.