NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The University of Notre Dame men’s and women’s cross country programs won their second meet in as many outings Friday at the Burke Golf Course, cruising to team and individual victories at the National Catholic Invitational.
The 12th-ranked Irish women won their 13th straight National Catholic title, totaling 18 points and taking the top three spots in the 5K championship. Sophomore Maddy Denner (17:21.12) won her second straight race, followed in second place by junior AnnaSophia Keller (17:45.13) and in third by Jocelyn Long (17:55.15). Erin Sullivan (18:02.84) finished fifth and senior Erin Archibeck (18:06.6) placed seventh for the Irish.
The No. 10 Irish men dictated the pace at the front of the men’s 5-mile race pack, led by sophomore Dylan Jacobs in his collegiate cross country debut. Jacobs crossed the line in 25:08.94, but the Irish also took the next four spots with sophomore Matthew Carmody (25:17.09), senior Peter Monahan (25.17.27), sophomore Zach Kreft (25:17.42) and senior Tyler Keslin (25.23.41) following closely behind. The win marked the 10th for the Irish in the last 14 years.
What The Coaches Say
Hatherly-Piane Director of Track & Field and Cross Country Matt Sparks on standout performances…
“This is Maddy Denner’s first home cross country meet … and we’re looking to fill some gaps with some upperclassmen graduating. Jessica Harris was an All-American and Maddy’s sliding into a performance leadership role as a true cross country freshman, so we’re excited about that. But really our fourth and fifth finishers really stepped up in Erin Sullivan and Erin Archibeck, kids who we don’t traditionally count on, but have really come into their own this fall. Erin Archibeck is a bit of a Rudy story, tried out for the team a year ago and has kept improving ever since. And Erin Sullivan is an 800 runner, who don’t traditionally succeed in cross country and has found a way to contribute, so those are two real success stories today.”
On the team performance…
“It was a warm day, so the emphasis of the race today was, ‘Let’s get out fast, which is what we need to practice for the bigger championship races in the future, then hit the brakes, settle in, try to regroup as a team and then really work on running hard the last mile. For the most part we were able to do that and we picked off some people in the last couple hundred meters, which is a skill that is sometimes hard to master, but you have to slow down early in the race to make sure you have a little gas left and I thought we did a really good job of that today.”
Men’s Cross Country Head Coach Sean Carlson on the debut of Dylan Jacobs…
“He redshirted last year and out of high school was the Footlocker National Champion, so it’s good to see him make the transition to 8K and I think he can make the transition to 10K just fine. He looked really easy and relaxed today.”
On running a team race…
“The cool part is our team did a really good job working together. We were six together through four miles and we kind of separated a little bit more after that, but they did a really good job of running the race as planned and going out very conservative and working together through four miles. … I was really happy. It shows our depth, which is really important for the season. And we didn’t run everybody today, but it shows that we have the depth to make it through a whole cross country season.”
Up Next
The Irish will return to the Burke Golf Course when they host the Joe Piane Invitational on Friday, October 4.
Results
51st National Catholic Invitational
Burke Golf Course
Notre Dame, Ind.
Sept. 20, 2019
Women’s 5K Championship – Team
1. Notre Dame 18
2. Dayton 70
3. Holy Cross 91
4. Walsh 92
5. Creighton 140
Women’s 5K Championship – Individual
1. Maddy Denner 17:21.12
2. AnnaSophia Keller 17:45.13
3. Jocelyn Long 17:55.15
5. Erin Sullivan 18:02.84
7. Erin Archibeck 18:06.6
16. Katie Rose Blachowicz 18:29.49
18. Madison Ronzone 18:34.31
Men’s 5-Mile Championship – Team
1. Notre Dame 15
2. Walsh 69
3. Dayton 82
4. Canisius 140
5. Loras 148
Men’s 5-Mile Championship – Individual
1. Dylan Jacobs 25:08.94
2. Matthew Carmody 25:17.09
3. Peter Monahan 25:17.27
4. Zach Kreft 25:17.42
5. Tyler Keslin 25:23.41
7. Brian Griffith 25:30.13
11. Brendan Fraser 26:08.54
14. Vincent Zona 26:15.46
19. Jack McNabola 26:31.20
Women’s Open 5K
2. MaryClare Leonard 18:35.98
4. Olivia Niziolek 18:51.29
6. Madelyn VanBlunk 19:04.28
7. Mikayla Schneider 19:11.14
9. Elizabeth Hannon 19:14.31