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Men runners try to regain title; women aim to defend

There is a chance of snow in Boston on Saturday, but that will not stop the Boston University men’s and women’s cross country teams from competing in the America East Championships tomorrow afternoon at Franklin Park.

The BU men were dethroned at this event last fall after winning the title in 2000, and current defending champion University of New Hampshire should be their biggest challengers on the eight kilometer (4.96 mile) course.

‘I like our chances, but it’s going to be a battle,’ said senior captain Jordan Jones. ‘It’s going to come down to who shows up.’

‘We are pretty evenly matched with New Hampshire through the top four guys,’ said BU Coach Bruce Lehane. ‘It’s going to come down to whose fifth guy performs better.’

The Terrier men have had the last three weeks off, an important benefit for a team that is trying to fight through injuries. Senior Paul Morrice has been battling a hip problem, while sophomore Dan Coval is still struggling with a foot injury. Both should be racing on Saturday.

‘[Morrice and Coval] are two guys we are really counting on,’ Lehane said.

Jones and Lehane agree that the last three weeks of training have been good for the healthy runners. The BU men should be in top shape for a run at the Wildcat pack.

‘We’ve been able to get some extra work in,’ Jones said. ‘We’ve been training for this since July.’

Meanwhile, on the women’s side, the six-time defending champion Terriers have their work cut out for them if they want to make it seven in a row. After finishing sixth in the conference last year, the State University of New York at Stony Brook has surprisingly put together a strong team that is favored to win on Saturday. New Hampshire poses another threat to BU.

‘Stony Brook has the top three runners. It’s going to be pretty tough,’ Lehane said. ‘We need our four and five runners to do a lot better than their four and five. That could open up the door.’

Still, the team is optimistic. They will not allow such a long winning streak in the conference to be taken away easily.

‘I think we’re ready. I have positive expectations,’ said freshman standout Jessica Iannacci. ‘I think we’re going to do really well.’

Running on their five kilometer (3.1 mile) home course could also be an advantage. Franklin Park is a confusing, hilly course that the Terriers are familiar with, running it once a week in practice.

‘It’s a big advantage being at our home course,’ Iannacci said. ‘I am a lot more confident.’

The women enter the meet optimistic but wary of the increased competition from past years. If they are going to be America East champions again, they will have to win coming from an uncommon position as underdogs. They are excited, however, and do not plan on relinquishing their title without a fight.

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