ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Navy men's cross country team begins its 100th season on Saturday, Sept. 3 as the Mids take part in the Salisbury Fall Classic in Salisbury, Md. The meet starts at 9:45 a.m. with the women's 6K with the men's 8K to follow.
Live results will be available.
Meet Participants
Navy, Salisbury, DeSales (women), Gallaudet, Goldey Beacom, Kutztown, Messiah, Rowan, Seton Hall, Shenandoah, and University of D.C.
Head Coach Aaron Lanzel's Take on 2022 Season / Team
"We graduated some tremendous competitors, and thankfully their gritty influence is flourishing in those who take up the identity of the 2022 Navy Cross Country Team. Brett (Brady), Alex (Rizzo), and Garrison (Clark) want to make a searing mark in their senior campaign and career for Navy. Sam (Keeny) made huge improvements with no signs of slowing down for this year, and there is an exciting anticipation of which young runners will deliver the biggest wallop in their new found fitness. Certainly,
Murphy Smith was on the cusp last year as a freshman. They are running to win, knowing that this year is a clean slate for everyone, and nothing can be taken for granted."
Season Review
In 2021, Lanzel directed the Navy cross country team to a remarkable season.
On the strength of six runners in the top-seven, Navy won the 2021 Patriot League Championship, marking the ninth title in program history and the first since 2016. The team's 20-point total was the second-lowest in the history of the Patriot League Championship.
Miguel Mathias and
Brett Brady (Phoenix, Ariz.) placed second and third overall to lead the team's result.
Sam Keeny (Annapolis, Md.) and
Garrison Clark (Severna Park, Md.) came in fourth and fifth ahead of team captain senior
Ashwin Briggs, who rounded out the team's scoring in sixth place. Fellow senior
John Bowers made it six Mids in the top-seven with his individual result.
Mathias, Brady, Keeny, Clark, Briggs, and Bowers were recognized with All-Patriot League First Team honors. Additionally, senior
David Nelsen was named All-Patriot League Second Team, while freshman
Murphy Smith (Charlotte, N.C.) was honored as the Rookie of the Meet. Lanzel was named the 2021 Patriot League Men's Cross Country Coach of the Year.
Navy defeated Army in the 2021 Star Meet in October. Racing at Bowdoin Park in Wappingers Falls, the trio of Brady, Clark, and Keeny dominated the field as they swept the top-three positions, with Brady finishing ahead of Army's first runner by over 14 seconds. Nelsen and Briggs were the final scorers for Navy as the pair crossed in fifth and sixth place to give the Mids a 17-46 victory.
Mitchell Rome (Dallas, Pa.) and Mathias made it seven Mids in the top-eight versus the Black Knights.
The team finished in eighth-place at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional at Lehigh University. Mathias and Clark spearheaded Navy's effort as the duo placed back-to-back in 35th and 36th place.
In the class room, Brady, Briggs, and Bowers were named to the Academic All-Patriot League Team. Navy was the only program with multiple student-athletes on the seven-man team. Brady earned top honors on the team as he was selected as the Patriot League Men's Cross Country Scholar-Athlete of the Year. The team was recognized with the USTFCCCA All-Academic team award. Twenty-nine (29) Mids were recognized on the 2021 Patriot League Academic Honor Roll, including five student-athletes, who posted a flawless 4.0 GPA in the fall semester.
