COLONIA, NJ – The 2024 ECC Cross Country Championships are set to run on Saturday, October 26 at Bassett Park in Williamsville, NY, hosted by Daemen. The women's 5k begins at 10:00 AM, followed by the men's 8k at 11:00 AM. This marks the first time in league history the cross country championship will take place at Bassett Park. 

The 2024 ECC Cross Country Championships will air live on the ECC Sports Network. Meet results, recaps, and photos will be posted on our ECC website (eccsports.org) and ECC social media platforms (X, Instagram, and Facebook) following the conclusion of the event. 

2024 East Coast Conference Cross Country Championships Central
  
On the women's side, nine-time defending champion Roberts Wesleyan was predicted to win its 10th consecutive ECC Championship on Saturday. Under the direction of reigning ECC Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year Andrew Dorr, the Redhawks return a trio of All-ECC First Team finishers in 2023 Runner of the Year Acacia Barber (1st), Rachel Horner-Richardson (2nd), and Kylee Odell (3rd), who swept the top three spots in last year’s championship. The Redhawks have sat atop the USTFCCCA East Region rankings for the last three weeks, but nipping at their heels are...

The Wildcats.

Daemen has finished runner-up to Roberts Wesleyan in each of the last three ECC Championships, falling by 20 points in 2023, just nine points in 2022, and 15 points in 2021. The Wildcats return All-ECC First Team selection and ECC Preseason Co-Runner of the Year Camryn Bailey (7th) as well as the All-ECC Second Team trio of Patsy Oberholzer (10th), Courtney Merrill (11th), and Emma Cain (13th). The 'Cats have sat in the No. 2 or No. 3 spots of the East Region poll in each of the last five weeks and are primed to make another run at the ECC crown. 
 
D'Youville and Molloy have both appeared in the East Region poll, with the Saints taking the No. 6 spots in back-to-back weeks in mid-September and Molloy taking the No. 8 spot four times. 

Also participating are St. Thomas Aquinas (Preseason Co-Runner of the Year Zoe Merryman), District of Columbia, Queens, and Staten Island. 

For a more in-depth look at our competing women's squads, check out the 2024 ECC Women's Cross Country preseason preview. 

More of the same on the men's side, nine-time defending champion Roberts Wesleyan was predicted to win its 10th consecutive ECC Championship on Saturday. Under the direction of reigning ECC Men’s Cross Country Coach of the Year Andrew Dorr, the Redhawks return four All-ECC First Team finishers in 2023 ECC Runner of the Year Owen White (1st), Jackson Doran (2nd), Zachary Hall (5th), and Theodore Pintabona (7th). RWU remains the only current ECC program to claim a conference title. 

White was unanimously selected the ECC Preseason Runner of the Year, and he will enter Saturday's race after dropping a collegiate-best 8k time of 24:26.8 on September 28 and a 4.97M time of 24:50.8 on October 12. White is a three-time ECC Runner of the Week this fall. 

The Redhawks are the lone ECC program represented in the USTFCCCA East Region rankings this week, having claimed the No. 1 or No. 2 spots in all six weeks.

Daemen has finished runner-up to Roberts Wesleyan in the last two ECC Championships, falling by 15 points in 2023 and 33 points in 2022. The Wildcats return All-ECC First Team selection Jon Moote (4th) and ECC Rookie of the Year CJ Johnson (6th) as well as All-ECC Second Team finisher Aidan Kincaid (9th). The 'Cats sat in the No. 3 spot of the East Region poll in each of first three weeks and, running on their home course, have their eyes set on the ECC trophy. 

Molloy has also appeared in the East Region poll throughout the fall, joining St. Thomas Aquinas, D'Youville, Queens, and Staten Island in competition this weekend.  

For a more in-depth look at our competing women's squads, check out the 2024 ECC Men's Cross Country preseason preview. 

The top 14 finishers from each gender will earn All-ECC recognition, with the 1-7 finishers creating the First Team and 8-14 finishers creating the Second Team. The ECC Runner of the Year, Rookie of the Year, and Coach of the Year will also be awarded.