LOUDONVILLE, NY – A motivated team of Siena Men's and Women's Cross Country runners will be seeking upward mobility in the MAAC Cross Country Championship season when the season gets underway on Saturday. 

After the Siena men's team finished in third place out of 13 teams and the Siena women's team placed in fourth out of 13 teams last season, the teams made it seven consecutive seasons in which both programs have placed inside the top four of the conference standings. However, both teams have even higher goals in mind. 

"We're in a really great spot on the men's side," said third-year head coach Elizabeth DeBole.

"They're definitely pumped. They've got a chip on their shoulder after finishing third place last year. And, we're really excited about where we're (our women's team is) at and it's a good challenge for us this year." 

Their journeys begin with the season opener on Saturday when the Saints head down I-87 to compete in the Marist Season Opener at Vassar Farm in Poughkeepsie.

The men's 8K begins at 9 a.m. while the women 6K are scheduled to start at 9:45 a.m.

Both Siena teams finished fifth in the event last season that also included UConn and UAlbany.

As in past years, conference members Fairfield and Iona are also competing in the event.

After consecutive seasons of finishing in second place at the MAAC Cross Country Championships, the Siena Men dropped one spot to third place at last season's championship and will be motivated to move back up.

Led by MAAC All-Rookie Team member Colin Brunelle (24:46.2), the men's team returns 19 student athletes to its roster. 

Two Saints on the men's side are also two years removed from All-MAAC performances with graduate student Jackson Cayward (second place with a time of 24:33.4) and senior Tyler Greene (13^th overall with a time of 25:16.1 in the event) back in the fray. 

The team's depth shows out with graduate student Luke Tkaczyk (had a best 8k time of 25:19.3 in 2023) and senior Brody Santagata (ran a 26:08.9 in the Lehigh Paul Short Run in 2022) in the fold, healthy and back to run.    

On the women's side, the team is coming off a fourth-place finish in the MAAC Championships and will be seeking rising runners such as seniors Chloe Poulos, Julianna Tourangeau and Mattingly O'Rourke as well as junior Faith Skowvron to provide a lift.

Three of the four had their personal best times in the 6K at last year's MAAC Championship while another has shown to have a comparable competitive time over the course of the same distance.

Skowvron ran the race in 22:17.8 while Poulos ran 22:29 in the Lehigh Paul Short 6K Run in 2022 while Tourangeau clocked in at 22:37.1 and O'Rourke had a time of 23:15.0 at the 2024 MAAC Championship. 

The rest of the schedule will feature many of the usual stops along the way. 

Siena will take part in the Jasper Fall Invitational for a second consecutive season on Sept. 14 at Twin Ponds on the Farm in Montgomery, NY at 9 a.m.

When the calendar turns to October, Siena will travel to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, to test themselves in the 51^st Paul Short Run on the Lehigh University Goodman Campus Cross Country Course on Oct. 3. 

The four scored college races per gender will allow up to 10 runners per team to compete.

The Gold and Brown Races will continue to service NCAA Division I teams from throughout the country while still accommodating many top-tier ranked teams from other divisions.
  
The ECAC / IC4A Cross Country Championships will take place on Oct. 17 at storied Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx, NY. 

The month wraps with a final warm up in the Central Connecticut Mini Meet in New Britain, Connecticut on Oct. 24.

Leading into November, Siena will visit familiar Montgomery, New York at Twin Ponds on the Farm for the MAAC Cross Country Championships on Nov. 1.

The women's 8K race will begin at 11 a.m. and the men's 6K race will follow at 12 p.m. 

2025 will mark the third consecutive year that the championships will be held at Twin Ponds on the Farm and the meet will be hosted by Manhattan University for the 31st time.  

Select team and individual qualifiers will advance to the NCAA Division I National Championships in Hopkinton, New Hampshire on the Hopkinton State Fairgrounds Cross Country Course on Nov. 14.