NEW YORK – The men's cross country team came in second overall, while the women finished third at the George Mason Invitational this weekend in Centreville, Va. The men finished the day with a total of 34 points, just behind top finisher Virginia, who had 21 points. The women came in third with 72 points, behind Virginia and Georgetown, who took the top two spots. 

Brendan Martin was the top finisher for the Lions on the men's side, coming in fourth overall, with a time of 24:55. Sophomore Kyle Merber was next to cross the line with a time of 25:09, good for fifth place. He was followed by teammate Justin Heck in sixth, at 25:13. First-year Leighton Spencer came in at 10th overall, with a time of 25:23, along with junior Anthony Merra, who finished 11th. 

Sophomore Gary Brownell led a wave of blue just a little further back, as he and junior Matthew Ciambriello both came in at 25:28, 15th and 16th place. Terrance Prial, Dustin Martin, Mike Murphy, Benjamin Veilleux and Thomas Polland finished 18th through 22nd, while Ryan Whithall and Robert Hartnett came in at 32nd and 35th to round out the pack.

Senior Irena Ossola led the charge for the women, coming in tenth, with a time of 21:54. Julianne Quinn followed her in 11th, at 21:58, with Erin Hays and Christina Henderson coming in at 14th and 15th, with times of 22:08 and 22:12 respectively. Junior Jillian Goodwin came in at 22nd, with a time of 22:51, while first-years Erin Gillingham and Emily Lanois came in at 24th (22:55) and 31st (23:14).

Up next, both the men and the women gear up for Pre-Nationals, which will take place Saturday, October 17 in Terre Haute, Ind.