ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Navy men's and women's cross country teams head into postseason competition with action at the Patriot League Championship. The 2025 Patriot League Cross Country Championships will be run at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa. on Friday, Oct., 31. The women's 6K championship race will kick off at 12:00 p.m., while the men's 8k race will follow at 1:00 p.m.
 
The Mountain Hawks will host the championships for the 11th time and the first since 2021 when Navy secured both the men's and women's titles.
 
All 10 Patriot League programs will compete in the championships, with team scoring determined by each squad's top-five finishers. Live results for the 2025 Patriot League Cross Country Championship will be available for both races.
 
12:00 PM – Women's Race
Six-time Patriot League Champions, the Navy women's cross country team will look return to the winner's circle after finishing third last season. Outright champions in 2008, 2011, 2012, 2021 and 2022, as well as co-champs in 2007, the Mids are almost always amongst the contenders with only one non-top-four finish since 2003. Over the past nine Patriot League meets in which they competed, the Mids have placed second in 2015, fourth in 2016, third in 2017, third in 2018, fourth in 2019, first in 2021, first in 2022, third in 2023, and third in 2024.
 
Last season, Navy finished third overall at the 2024 Patriot League Cross Country Championship. Alex Wercinski led the Midshipmen with a fourth-place finish in the 6K event to earn First Team All-Conference distinction, while Sophie Compton and Olivia Lutkevich finished 11th and 13th to earn second-team honors.
 
Wercinski, who was the top finisher for Navy in every meet she competed in, once again led the way for the Midshipmen. The senior clocked a season-best 6K time of 20:50.1 to finish fourth overall and earn First Team All-Patriot League honors for the first time in her four-year career.
 
Compton and Lutkevich both clocked season-best times to finish 11th and 13th overall to earn Second Team All-Patriot League honors. Compton clocked a time of 21:10.4 to finish just outside of the top 10, while Lutkevich crossed the finish line in a time of 21:11.7 to earn all-league for the first time in her Navy career. For Compton, it was the second time in her career that she earned all-conference distinction after finishing ninth at the conference meet as a freshman.
 
Lillee Tang just missed all-conference honors, finishing 16th overall (top 14 earn All-Patriot League). She clocked a time of 21:20.8 to finish third among the Midshipmen. Kate Leddy rounded out the top five for the Mids, crossing the tape with a time of 21:47.4 to finish 25th overall. May McConkey and Mia-Claire Kezal finished 27th and 30th, respectively, to close out Navy's top seven. McConkey clocked a season-best time of 21:47.6, while Kezal was just behind with a time of 21:50.7.
 
Lexi Ensor (21:56.5), Samantha Woodworth (22:04.9), along with Madeline Palmisciano (22:05.5), Daisy Dastrup (22:13.0), and Jane Phillips (22:27.6) also competed for the Mids.
 
1:00 PM – Men's Race
Competing in their 22nd Patriot League Championship in program history, the Mids bring a winning pedigree into Saturday's race. In the 10 years between 2008 and 2017, Navy won eight league titles with a pair of runner-up results in 2012 and 2017. All-time, the Mids have 12 league titles to stand alone with the most cross country championships in Patriot League history. Additionally, Navy has seven second-place results, along with one third and one fourth-place outcome.
 
For the second consecutive year, Murphy Smith claimed individual medalist honors to lead Navy men's cross country to its fourth straight Patriot League Championship team title at the Lafayette College Cross Country Course in Easton, Pa. in the 2024 Patriot League Cross Country Championship. Led by Smith's first-place finish, the Midshipmen placed nine runners in the top 14 to register a team-low score of 19 in the 8K race to win the event by 30 points.
 
For the second straight season, Smith was named the Runner of the Year, while Patrick Gandini was the Patriot League Rookie of the Year. Navy head coach Aaron Lanzel was tabbed Coach of the Year for the fourth consecutive year.
 
Smith took individual medalist honors with a season-best time of 23:14.5. Eight teammates joined Smith in the top 14. Luke Nester, Jackson Nguyen, Justin Mumford, and Alexander Kirkland finished in order, 3-4-5-6, while Matt Newell, Patrick Gandini, and Dane Eike crossed the finish line in order, 8-9-10. James Partlow was three spots back of Eike to finish 13th overall as the ninth Mid in the top 14.
 
Nester clocked a time of 23:31.5, while Nguyen was two seconds back with a time of 23:33.8. Mumford was one second back of the pace with a time of 23:34.8 with Kirkland coming in right behind with a time of 23:36.9. Newell crossed the finish line with a time of 23:57.5, while Gandini was the top finishing freshman with a time of 24:01.3. Eike and Partlow finished with times of 24:01.6 and 24:11.4, respectively.
 
In addition to earning Runner of the Meet honors, Smith was one of five Midshipmen to earn First Team All-Patriot League honors. Nester, Nguyen, Mumford, and Kirkland also earned first-team honors, while Newell, Gandini, Eike, and Partlow were named second-team all-conference.
 
Additionally, Nico Valdivieso (24:28.0), Logan Flament (24:42.2), and Ben Countiss (24:44.3) competed for the Midshipmen, all finishing in the top 30 of the race.
 
Up Next
Following Friday's championship race, both Navy teams will have two weeks to prepare for the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional, hosted at Lehigh on Friday, Nov. 14.