Edinboro, PA. – On Friday, the Wheeling University Men's Cross Country team wrapped up their regular season schedule at the Fighting Scots Invitational, hosted by Edinboro University. As a team, the Cardinals took 6th place in the field, but some strong individual performances led the effort. The Cardinals had one top 10 finisher on the day and placed two in the top 20 in their second 8K of the season.

Leading the way for the Cardinals was junior Hunter Tomich, who was the lone Cardinal to crack the top 10 on the day. Tomich took 10th overall, running a time of 26:48.9, and finished fifth among fellow Mountain East Conference (MEC) competition. It was a big bounce back for Tomich, who was able to drop nearly two minutes off of his time from the first meet of the season. He was also just 33 seconds off pace for his PR in the 8K as he competed in his second 8K of the season. After not cracking the 28 minute mark last time out, the run gave Tomich confidence as he heads towards the conference championship event in two weeks. Tomich just missed earning All-MEC honors a season ago, missing the mark by eight spots shy of the mark and he is looking to get that honor for the first time in his career in 2024. 

The other top 20 finisher for the Cardinals was sophomore Shane Levesque who finished 19th overall. Like Tomich, he also dropped time off his first 8K of the season, knocking five seconds off to finish with a time of 27:29.5. It fell just five seconds shy of his 8K PR, which he set during his freshman season, as he continues to be an important piece for the Cardinals down the stretch. Competing in his second ever Collegiate Cross Country event, Magnus Polkner was the final Cardinal to crack the top 30 of the event, running a time of 27:49.4. it was his highest collegiate finish on the season and, although he did not lower time from his first meet, he was able to once again crack the 28-minute mark in the event. Levesque and Polkner led the way in the first 8K of the season and look to continue to be high point scorers for the team.

The final two runners for the Cardinals were Drew Pierce and CJ Anderson, rounding out the field in 69th and 70th respectively. For Pierce, it was just his third career collegiate meet, and the first 8K he competed in, running a time of 39:12.8. Anderson would compete in his first cross country race of the year, and took 70th with a time of 39:14.2.

The Wheeling University Men's Cross Country team returns to action on Saturday, October 26th, when they compete at the 2024 MEC Men's Cross Country Championships.