The men’s and women’s cross country teams bolted out of the gates in their first event of the season, held at the Fens Classic and hosted by Emmanuel College. The invitational, which is in its eighth year of competition, has hosted elite teams from around the New England region, including Wheaton College, University of Massachusetts Boston and Roger Williams University.

The men’s team claimed its second consecutive win in the three-mile race during the 2014 campaign, while the women did not compete. The Judges racked up 23 points to propel themselves over the Roger Williams and into a first place position. 

Jarret Harrigan ’17 was narrowly beat by a Roger Williams runner to slide cleanly into second place in the individual ranks. Harrigan was one of the six Brandeis runners to stop the clock in the top 10.

Other notable Brandeis finishers were current Cross Country runners Quinton Hoey ’17 and Ryan Stender ’18. Hoey eased into third place with a time of 15:25 while Stender pulled through exactly 10 seconds later to capture fifth place. Mitchell Hutton ’17 and Liam Garvey ’17 also placed in the top 10, helping the Judges secure the top spot in the event. 

This year, the teams picked up right where they left off, dominating the leaderboard and claiming first place in all four events. 

On the men’s side, Hutton placed in first in the five-kilometer run with the only sub-16 time in the race. The Judges continued to roll in, taking the next four places on the team. Garvey followed Hutton into second place and timed in at 16:10, with Brian Sheppard ’18 pacing in behind him. 

The Judges took four of the top five finishes in the race and six of the top 10. Thomas College and Emmanuel were the only other schools to finish in the top-10.

The Judges kept their foot on the pedal for the team five-kilometer race, stopping the clock at 1:21.05 to outpace Emmanuel for first place. The Judges average 16:13.00 on the race.

The women’s team beat out the field, topping the leaderboard for a first-place gold finish. In the individual two-mile run, Emily Bryson ’19 took the top nod with a time of 11:09. Kate Farrell ’17 dropped in right behind Bryson with a speedy time of 11:31. Julia Bryson ’19 followed suit with a time of 12:01, just outside the sub-11 club. 

Overall, the Judges stole all five of the top five spots, adding to their incredible day on the field. The Judges also took seven of the top 10 spots to round out their day.

The Judges then beat out Simmons College for the team race, clocking in at 59:34.0, to take another gold on the day. The race closed out the day for the Judges, giving the women the gold.

The men are on the right track, trying to erase their late season turbulence and regain their opening season form from last year. The Judges placed in first for their first two events but fell to 28th overall in the Open New England Championships, and could not crack the top five in any of the later events. 

On the other hand, the women are looking to emulate their past season’s calculated consistency. The Judges placed in the top five four times and the top 10 six times during their 2015 season. 

The women will be tested when they look to repeat their gold performance at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Invitational on Sept. 17. The pressure is on the men as well who will continue their quest for perfection and seal their second consecutive gold on Sept. 17.