St. John's University Athletics
Metropolitan Cross Country Championship Awaits St. John's
10/12/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
QUEENS, N.Y. - The St. John's cross country team prepares for its second appearance of the season at historic Van Cortlandt Park for the running of the Metropolitan Cross Country Championships on Friday afternoon.
About the Metropolitan Championships
The Mets, hosted by Fordham University, gather some of the top teams in the tri-state area and BIG EAST foes including: Fordham, Iona, LIU Brooklyn, LIU Post, Manhattan, Marist, NJIT, NYIT, New York University, Rutgers, Seton Hall, St. Francis (N.Y.), St. John's, and St. Peter's. The women's 5K will begin at 1:30 p.m. and the men's 5-mile race will follow at 2 p.m.
Last Time Out
The Red Storm raced to a 13th place overall finish out of 24 teams in the second-level Division I Brown Race of the 44th annual Paul Short Run, presented by Asics. St. John's finished with three runners in the top-65 on the day, and multiple new personal bests in the 6K event. This was the first appearance for the Johnnies in the event since 2010.
Senior Melissa Hidalgo led the way for the Johnnies by posting a personal-best time of 22:34 to finish 43rd. Sophomores Therese Gallagher and Stephanie Gerland finished close behind Hidalgo to also secure finishes in the top-65 with times of 22:40 and 23:00, respectively. Both times were new personal bests for the runners as Gerland shaved over 70 seconds off her previous best in the 6K event.
Metropolitan Success
Last season was a standout performance for sophomore Antonia Howard at the championship by winning the individual title with a time of 18:27.0, shattering a personal best. As a team, St. John's finished fourth with 105 team points as five student-athletes posted top-40 finishes.
As a team, the Johnnies are looking for their first Metropolitan title since the 1980s.
Quote Me
Following the Paul Short Run, Head Coach Jim Hurt had this to say about the Mets, "We had a great day running in the 6K event, and with everyone healthy we should be a factor at the Met Championships."
What's On Tap
Championship season is fully underway for the St. John's cross country team as the Red Storm will prepare for the BIG EAST Championships on Oct. 28 in Kenosha, Wis.
Follow the Storm
You can receive real-time scores, as well as, a list of participating schools in the Metropolitan Championships here. As always, follow St. John's cross country on Twitter @StJohnsXCTF.
Players Mentioned
