FREDONIA, N.Y. -- Fredonia will join nine other conference teams Saturday for the SUNYAC Women's and Men's Cross Country Championship races at Letchworth State Park Highbanks Recreation Area in Mount Morris, N.Y. The women's race, at 6,000 meters, is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. The men's 8,000-meter race is set for noon. SUNY Geneseo will serve as race host and will assist in providing a live stream of the awards ceremony Saturday afternoon.

Race Information: Complete race information is available here. The webpage includes lists of entries of all 10 schools, the box assignments, course maps, a link to the official timing company Leone Timing, directions to Letchworth State Park, and much more. SUNYAC has also provided an a separate link to an on-line store of official championship merchandize.   

Women's Race: The full contingent of 14 runners are entered and have been assigned bib numbers 163 through 176. Entrants are, in alphabetical and bib order, Victoria Banes, Bonnie Binggeli, Rebekah Champlin, Madison Courtney, Carly DeBono, Brenna Donovan, Kristien Guarino, Kara Hall, Julia Johnson, Hannah Kurbs, Emily Maguire, Alyssa Stroud, Kelly Vincent, and Stephanie Wojnowski. Fredonia will leave out of Box No. 5. ... Fredonia finished fourth in last year's race. "The women's race," Head Coach Tom Wilson said, "will be very tight between Fredonia, Cortland, Plattsburgh, and New Paltz. .. This year we have a much faster and tighter team (than last year). The key for my women to finish third will be to finish in a tight spread and run a down-hill type second half of their race."

Kudos to Captains: Wilson credited the ascent of the Blue Devil women to senior captains Hall and Stroud. "I truly believe our success has been molded from our captains," he said. "They have taken this team and put them from the bottom of the conference to fighting for a top-three finish."

Men's Race: Coming off a second-place finishing last year, the Blue Devil men will leave out of Box No. 6 wearing bib numbers 36 to 45. Entrants are, in alphabetical and bib order, Bobby Cooper, Kyle Egan, Jack Erhard, Ethan Francis, Merlin Joseph Jr., Zak Kellerman, Collin Mulcahy, Kevin Nickerson, Aidan Pollard, and Cyd Scott. "The men's race will be fast," Wilson predicts. "It will take a smart and patient race from my top five guys (Mulcahy, Francis, Cooper, Joseph, Scott) to see the success like last year. Our goal is to finish third, but it will be very tight between Fredonia, Oswego, and Cortland.

Last Hurrah: Ten Fredonia seniors will be competing in their final SUNYAC cross country championship race -- Binggeli, Hall, Johnson, Stroud, Vincent, Minihane, and Champlin for the women and Mulcahy, Cooper, and Nickerson for the men. 

This 'n That: Fredonia has won eight SUNYAC men's cross country titles, most recently in 1992 ... Vinnie DeRocco was Fredonia's last individual men's champ, in 1990 ...  Other past individual men's champs are Bob Carroll (1976 & 1977), John Hallgren (1978), Don Brenner (1980), Bernie Prabucki (1981 & 1982), Michael Gaughran (1985), and Jeff Winden (1993) ... Wilson was 2015 SUNYAC Men's Coach of the Year, the first time a Blue Devil won the award ... No Fredonia individual or team has won a SUNYAC women's cross country championship ... Four points (two in each race) in the Battle by the Lake series with Buffalo State are up for grabs. Fredonia holds an early 4-2 lead. 

The Final Words: "I am very confident in both my programs for this Saturday," Wilson said, "I will be looking for my large senior class to help keep the calm attitude and confident mindset during the race."