M.X-C trims its ranks for Iona Invitational tomorrow

The Penn men's cross country team will leave top runners behind to give them a week's worth of rest. After running away with their "first win in awhile" at the Loyola (Ill.) Invitational last Saturday, some members of the victorious Penn men's cross country team will take this weekend off to rest and recuperate. Too much celebrating, perhaps? Au contraire, mon frere. When the Quakers head to Van Cortlandt Park in New York City for the 8K Iona Invitational this Saturday, a few of the familiar shoes will be absent from the starting line. "[This race] gives some of our guys good racing experience, while an opportunity for others to rest," said Paolo Frescura, the Penn senior captain who finished eighth in last weekend's invitational for the triumphant Quakers. "There is no real division being made between who is good and who is not. It's just a question of who needs rest right now and who needs to get a race in." With the exception of Jim Miranda and John Horrocks, the squad that traveled to Chicago last Saturday and captured four of the top 10 finishes, will take the weekend off, but they will not take it easy. In fact, the Quakers will be engaged in some heavy training this week to prepare for their schedule's most intense races at the close of the season, particularly the IC4A and Heptagonal Championships. "[Training] will be up high for the next weeks before it dips down again, as we focus on dropping mileage and peaking for the IC4As and Heps." The Quakers look poised coming into Saturday's meet. "The sophomore class brought a new, aggressive attitude to the team," Frescura said. "This year we are more mature and hungrier to improve, and with Brian [Kovalsky] coming in, it helps as well." Kovalsky, who finished eight seconds behind the leader Justin Young of Butler last weekend and second overall, was the only Penn freshman to compete at Loyola. He will also rest this Saturday to regain his vigor for the Paul Short Invitational at Lehigh October 4. The Quakers will face "some good runners" from Harvard and Iona this weekend, according to Frescura. This meet will certainly test and expose the depth that the Penn team possesses, while for others. "It will be a chance for some guys coming off injury to gear up and get ready to race," Frescura said. Despite a different core of runners, the same focus and determination will be present. Regardless of the men representing Penn, Frescura's work ethic "to show up, race well and have a good performance" will prevail.

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