Cross Country Teams Open 2017 Season Saturday at UMass

The Boston University men's and women's cross country teams will open their 2017 seasons on Saturday at the Minuteman Invitational, hosted by UMass.

The women will race at 11 a.m., with the men following at 11:30 a.m. This will be the first meet for the Terriers under the guidance of head coach Paul Spangler, who took over the position this summer. In addition to UMass, the Terriers will compete against harriers from UConn, CCSU, Maine, Sacred Heart and Vermont.

The Terrier men enter the season ranked sixth in the Northeast Region by the USTFCCCA. BU returns a bulk of the squad that finished 10th at the 2016 NCAA Northeast Regional and third at the 2016 Patriot League Championship. That includes reigning PL Rookie of the Year and USTFCCCA All-Region selection Paul Luevano. Also back is 2015 PL Rookie of the Year and two-time First Team All-Patriot League selection Alexander Seal.

On the women's side, junior Courtney Breiner is poised to improve upon her 12th-place finish at last year's Patriot League Championship, which garnered her Second Team All-Patriot League accolades. Four of the team's top seven harriers from last year's conference meet return in 2017, with two impressive freshmen - Laura Parkinson and Raquel Tadeo - set to make an immediate impact on the squad. Parkinson comes to BU after winning silver for Canada in the 1,500m run at the Pan am Junior Championships.

Saturday's races are the first of what will be a challenging 2017 schedule. BU will consistently compete against the nation's best, including at the Coast-to-Coast Battle of Beantown on Sept. 22, and at NCAA Pre-Nationals in Louisville, Kentucky on Oct. 14. The Terriers will also compete at the Paul Short Run on Sept. 29 at Lehigh, which will be the site of this year's conference championships on Oct. 28.

Schedule

Cross Country Teams Open 2017 Season Saturday at UMass

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Players Mentioned

Courtney Breiner

Paul Luevano

Laura Parkinson

Alexander Seal

Raquel Tadeo

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