CLARK, NJ - The Susquehanna men and women are prepared to head to Oak Ridge Park for the Landmark Conference Cross Country Championships this Saturday. The men begin the races at 11 a.m. in the 8K, while the women run the 6K at 12 noon. The awards ceremony will take place at 1:15 p.m. from the course. Both teams are poised to exceed expectations, especially after the Landmark's Pre-Championship Polls placed the men and women in fifth. 

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Both the men and women have seen significant progress during their fall races, though it was the presence of sophomore Derick Blair that arguably stole the show this season. Over the course of just four meets, Blair earned Landmark Runner of the Week in three of them, most recently following the Getysburg Aubrey Shenk Invite where he broke the school record with a time of 24:43.0, besting the previous mark of 23:47 set by Ryan Gleason in 2003. He also finished first in the Green Race at the Lehigh University Paul Short Run, finishing with a then personal best of 25:18.8. Performances like these, as well as returning All-Landmark runner Evander Lackman, helped the men's runners secure third-place team finishes at Lebanon Valley and Dickinson, as well as 11th at Lehigh in the Green Race and seventh at Gettysburg. Lackman, who has continued to be Susquehanna's second finisher through all four races this season, completed an 8K season best at Gettysburg at 26:07.9. His best 8K time was a 25:39.6 he ran at Lock Haven as a first-year. 

Junior Sophia Bostwick has continued her exceptional cross country career by being the top team finisher in all four races during the regular season. The big highlight was Bostwick placing 12th at Lehigh in the Green Race 6K with a time of 23:19.5. She was one of three River Hawks to run the 6K race at Dickinson's Long-Short Invitational, being the team leader in that race with a mark of 24:17.2. Joining Bostwick on the Dickinson course, which will be the site of the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regionals, were Jess Askins and Kylie Dixon. The first-year Askins finished 54th with a time of 26:02.5, while Dixon finished 71st with a time of 27:04.7. Between their four races this regular season, Susquehanna finished fifth at Lebanon Valley, eighth at Dickinson as the rest of the team ran the 4K, 14th at Lehigh in the Green Race, and 10th at Gettysburg. Askins set a young personal best during the Gettysburg 6K race with a time of 24:41.2, while Dixon set a season best at Gettsyburg also with a 6K time of 25:27.8.