Vanderbilt Cross Country traveled to South Bend, Indiana, to compete in the Joe Piane Invitational on Oct. 4. Out of 22 women’s squads and 19 men’s, the Commodores finished 11th and 12th, respectively. The women’s team finished just one spot behind Oklahoma but well ahead of Mississippi State — the only other SEC programs at the meet.
On the women’s side, senior Julia Rosenberg came in first for the Commodores with a 44th-place finish in the 5-kilometer race. The Weston, Connecticut, native crossed the finish line at 16 minutes and 57.5 seconds. Next for Vanderbilt was graduate transfer Ellie Wolski, who placed 54th overall, and Audrey Allman at 99th. First-year Claire Peterson and seniors Cameron Fawcett and Ella Lambert also placed for the Commodores, coming in 101st, 102nd and 103rd, respectively. The 5k race featured 191 runners.
“Watching freshman Claire Petersen have a college debut at one of the best meets in the country and fearlessly compete and show her intention to be one of the best was awesome to see,” director of cross country Althea Thomas said.
First-year Michael Skora came in 15th out of 158 participants in the 8-kilometer race on the men’s side. Skora — this time finishing with a time of 24:31.8 — has led the Commodores at all three meets this season. Sophomore Brady Bliven followed Skora, finishing in 23rd, while first-year Casey Bohrer crossed the finish line in 74th place. Also finishing in the top 100 were sophomore Patrick Ford at 79th, junior Dylan Ballard at 93rd and junior David Song at 100th.
“To see Brady Bliven, a speedster in the middle distances, put it all together and compete with his teammate Michael [Skora] was just dynamic,” Thomas said. “Brady is a guy that can run 49 in the 400m, and for him to couple that speed with the endurance he has developed is just amazing.”
Vanderbilt will be back in action on Oct. 19 when it travels to Madison, Wisconsin, for the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals meet — the final regular season competition of the year.
