CROSS COUNTRY NOTEBOOK
Vermont men's and women's cross country are back in action on Saturday (Oct. 5) for the Paul Short Invitational in Lehigh, Pennsylvania.
 
The Catamounts will have runners competing in the men's and women's Open races at 9:30 a.m. and 10:15 a.m., respectively. The men's 8k Gold race will begin at 11 a.m. followed by the Women's 6k Gold race at 11:45 a.m.
 
RELATED LINKS
Saturday (Oct. 5): Live Results | Meet Information

COACH'S QUOTE
"Looks like the biggest Paul Short Invite ever, and we are pleased to be accepted into the Gold races for both teams at this year's event," said head coach Matt Belfield. "While we still need to make some progress toward championship season, I feel we have definitely improved since two weeks ago in Boston. Concentration and poise under intensely competitive conditions will be keys to success. As I've said before, I really like our teams, and all the men and women have worked really hard to create this great thing we have going. Saturday will be a good measuring stick for sure."
 
PAUL SHORT PREVIEW
After heavy competition at the Coast-to-Coast Battle in Beantown (Sep. 20), the Catamounts face another packed field at Lehigh's Paul Short Invitational. The men's Gold race will see 45 teams in action while the women's Gold race hosts 44 teams.
 
Utah State headlines the men's field as two-time defending champions at the Invite. Last year's runner up Virginia Tech will be missing the event, but third-place Army will be looking to prevent Utah State's possible three-peat. Two nationally ranked teams are in the field with Iona leading the way at 23rd and Villanova at 29th in the USTFCCCA polls. The Vermont men are joined by fellow America East schools UAlbany, Stony Brook, and UMass Lowell at the meet.
 
Yale won the women's Gold race last season, but will not be competing in this year's meet. Georgia and Utah State took second and third, respectively, last year in Lehigh. Princeton is the only nationally ranked team in the women's competition, sitting at 27th in the USTFCCCA polls, while America East foes UAlbany, Binghamton, New Hampshire, and UMass Lowell will join the Cats at the Paul Short Invite.

LAST YEAR AT LEHIGH | Recap
The Vermont women posted a 22nd-place finish while the men came in 24th place at last year's Paul Short Invitational.
 
John Benner (55th) led the Vermont men with a time of 25:19, which was a personal record at the time. Lauren Trumble '19 (77th) paced the UVM women.
 
Jack Carmody, Tyler Marshall, and Ian Denis are all returners that scored in the event for the men. On the women's side, Maggie Hallahan, Caroline O'Shea, Sunny Nagpaul, and Konstanze Wendeln scored for the Cats. Click here for a full recap of last year's event.
 
LOOKING BACK AT THE COAST-TO-COAST | Recap
The last time the Catamounts were both in action was the Coast-to-Coast Battle in Beantown, hosted by the Boston College Eagles.
 
Bel Sogoloff led the Vermont women to a 12th-place finish in the 5k team competition. The Catamount newcomer ran a time of 18:31 for 55th overall and was closely followed by fellow rookie Meaghan Alba (61st). Phoebe Koski (72nd), Jane Leighton (86th) and Konstanze Wendeln (87th) rounded out Vermont's scorers.
 
The UVM men were led by senior captain John Benner to a 17th-place finish in the 8k team competition. Benner finished in 25:27 for 62nd overall, followed by Ian Denis (25:38) in 74th-place. Tyler Marshall (85th), freshman Andrew Crompton (89th), and Matt Hynes (96th) also scored for the Catamounts. Click here for a full recap of the event.
 
CATS IN THE RANKINGS | USTFCCCA
Vermont's women's cross country team is currently ranked 13th in the Northeast Region while the men hold the 15th spot, according to the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
 
The Vermont women reached as high as 12th in the Northeast a season ago, but turned in a 16th-place finish at the regional championship.
 
Last season, the Catamount men recorded their highest Northeast Region finish in program history (13th) at the regional championship in Buffalo.
 
FALL FOLIAGE INVITATIONAL | CatamounTV Highlights
The Catamounts return to Hard'Ack Recreation Area in St. Albans for their second home meet of the season on Saturday (Oct. 19). The women are slated for a 1 p.m. start, followed by the men at 1:45 p.m.
 
Last year, the Catamounts swept the Fall Foliage Invite earning 15 points each against Sacred Heart and Bryant. Lauren Trumble '19 led the UVM women and Matt Hynes paced the men with a career-best 8k time of 25:07.4 to earn America East Male Performer of the Week honors. Click here for CatamounTV highlights from last year's meet.
 
The Fall Foliage Invite will be Vermont's final test before heading to the America East Championships (Nov. 2) in Albany, New York.