BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Patriot League announced its weekly award winners for cross country on Tuesday afternoon and a pair of Navy student-athletes – Dane Eike and Brianne Duynstee – were recognized for their performance at the 2026 Paul Short Run at the Goodman Campus Cross Country Course on Friday, Oct. 2. Eike was named the Patriot League Men's Runner of the Week, while Duynstee was selected as the conference's Women's Rookie of the Week.
 
Eike secured a top-10 individual finish to lead the Navy men's cross country team to a fourth-place overall finish at the Paul Short Run's College Gold 8K. Competing in a field of 35 scoring programs, Eike established himself at the front of the pack and crossed the finish line in 24:15.8 to capture 10th place among the 302 competitors that finished the 8K event. Behind Eike's standout performance, the Midshipmen compiled 193 total points and maintained a strong pack with a 1:04.4 spread among their top five runners and an average finishing time of 24:48.0.
 
Duynstee secured an 80th-place finish among the 315 competitors that finished the race at the Paul Short Run's College Gold 6K with a time of 21:57.1. She was the top freshman among Patriot League schools in the event – Army, Bucknell, Colgate, and meet host Lehigh. Duynstee helped the Navy women's cross country team place 13th overall out of 37 scoring programs, utilizing a tight pack to secure their position, posting an 18.3-second spread among their top five runners with an average finish time of 21:53.4.
 
Up next, the Midshipmen return to action on Saturday, Oct. 17 as the Mids host the Black Knights in the annual Star Meet, which is part of the overall Army-Navy Star Series presented by USAA. The women are set for 11:00 a.m., while the men are slated for 12:00 p.m. Live results will be available.