M. X-C takes second at Iona

With some of Penn's leading runners resting their bodies and their minds this past Saturday, the other members of the men's cross country team had some big shoes to fill. Their sneakers may still have had the paper stuffed in them, but they were indeed filled. Maybe even tight. The Quakers captured three of the top-10 finishes, including Penn junior Mike Phillips' winning time of 26 minutes, 5.1 seconds, at the Iona Invitational Saturday, despite falling narrowly to Georgetown for second place overall. Penn juniors John Horrocks and Matt Blodgett raced well, securing the fifth and 10th places, respectively. Rhode Island finished a distant third and Harvard took eighth. "It was just another race for us to get some experience in," Penn coach Charlie Powell said. "It's not one of the bigger races that we are looking at. "We have a lot of talented young people, an outstanding freshman (Bryan Kobalsky) and some great leaders in Paolo (Frescura), our captain, and senior Aaron McCommons. When you put all of the ingredients together, they start to gel as a team, and this has been real fun." As the Quakers approach the mid-way mark of their season, they will engage in some intense practices, running in the range of 82-85 miles per week. This heavy workload does not pose a threat to his runners, according to Powell. "They have always been a hard-working, fun-loving group," he said. "And so far as that's concerned, nothing has changed there. [They will be] doing the same old stuff that's going to take us through to the end of the season." Although several individual goals have been established thus far, Powell hopes his team will finish "in the top three in our league." But for now, the Quakers will focus their efforts upon this coming Saturday's Paul Short Invitational at Lehigh. "We will be mentally preparing (this week) because there are going to be some great teams," Powell said. "Out of the 33 schools entered, 12 are ranked nationally in either division I, II or III. There are some great Division I teams up there." Among the schools represented are Georgetown, which defeated Penn last Saturday, James Madison, Michigan State and North Carolina State. Also racing will be Brown, the preseason favorite to win the Heptagonal Championships, the culminating race of the season. "It will be hot and heavy, Powell said. "It will tell me where they (the opposing teams) are. I already know where we are."

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