BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Lehigh collected two of the four Patriot League M-F Athletic Cross Country weekly awards, when the League office announced the honors on Tuesday. American and Lafayette each collected a remaining accolade.
Patriot League M-F Athletic Men’s Cross Country Runner of the Week
Ryan Baker, Lehigh, Sr., Lewes, Del./Cape Henlopen
*Baker guided Lehigh to a first-place team finish at the Lafayette Invitational as the senior crossed the line with a winning time of 24:50.0 in the 8K race.
*It marked the first career collegiate individual title for the Lewes, Del. native.
Patriot League M-F Athletic Women’s Cross Country Runner of the Week
Kaitlyn Highduch, Lehigh, Jr., Mohnton, Pa./Governor Mifflin
*Highduch captured the individual title at the Lafayette Invitational as the junior clocked a time of 21:33.9 to win the 6K race.
*The Mohnton, Pa. native led Lehigh to a third-place team finish as she captured her second career individual title at the Lafayette course, as she finished first in last year's Lehigh vs. Lafayette dual.
Patriot League M-F Athletic Men’s Rookie of the Week
Hudson Schunk, Lafayette, Fr., Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield Warde
*Schunk guided the Leopards to a runner-up team finish at the Lafayette Invite as the freshman took fifth in the 8K race with a time of 25:27.5.
*The Fairfield, Conn. native was the top-finishing first-year runner in a field that featured Lehigh, NJIT and Rider.
Patriot League M-F Athletic Women’s Rookie of the Week
Anna Villavicencio, American, Fr., Woodlake, Calif./Woodlake
*Villavicencio paced American at the PSU Spiked Shoe Invitational as the freshman finished 33rd overall with a time of 21:56.6 in the 6K race.
*The Eagles finished eighth as a team in a highly competitive field that featured Buffalo, Bucknell, Maryland, Monmouth, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Saint Joseph's University and Syracuse.
Honorable mentions went to American’s Marcus Valenzuela, Army West Point’s Tyler Blissett and Kara Sinnott, Bucknell’s Katie Moncavage, Ethan Pratt-Perez and Sean Wemmlinger, Lafayette’s Grace Houlihan, Loyola Maryland’s Fayola Allison and Mikey Barnes, and Navy’s Juliet Frum, Dom Pappagallo, Zack Poekert and Sam Vanderhave.
Men’s Runner of the Week
9.8 – Joseph Mahon, Holy Cross, Sr.
9.15 – Ryan Baker, Lehigh, Sr.
Women’s Runner of the Week
9.8 – Kailey Granger, Bucknell, Sr.
9.15 – Kaitlyn Highduch, Lehigh, Jr.
Men’s Rookie of the Week
9.8 – Jason Baker, Lehigh, Fy.
9.15 – Hudson Schunk, Lafayette, Fr.
Women’s Rookie of the Week
9.8 – Brianne Duynstyee, Navy, Fr.
9.15 – Anna Villavicencio, American, Fr.
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athletes can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes who are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.