Oct. 19, 2002

The George Mason women's cross country team finished fourth, while the men's team was sixth on Saturday, Oct. 19, at the Maryland Invitational at the University Golf Course in College Park, MD. American defeated six other teams to claim both the men's and women's team titles.

Senior Michelle DiPenti (Warren, PA/Warren Area) continued to lead the women's team, placing sixth in 18 minutes, 41 seconds (18:41.00) in the women's 5,000-meter race. Sophomore Sara Hines (Strasburg, VA/Strasburg) finished 15th in 19:28, and was one of four runners on the women's team to record a season-best time. Sophomore Ryan Holmes (Largo, MD/Largo Senior) placed 21st in a season-best 19:40, while junior Dana Early (Milmont Park, PA/Ridley) was 26th in 20:06.

Junior Ben Sommers (Nashua, NH/Nashua) was the top-Patriot finisher in the men's 8,000-meter race, placing 25th in 27:35. Freshman Dennis Moriarty (Rockville Centre, NY/Southside) finished 34th in 28:29 and sophomore Alex Gornik (Chesapeake, VA/Great Bridge) was 38th in a season-best 28:57.

The Patriots return to competition on Nov. 2 as they host the Colonial Athletic Association Cross Country Championships at Bull Run Regional Park in Centreville, VA. The women's 6,000-meter race will begin at 10:30 a.m., while the men's 8,000-meter race is scheduled to start at 11:30 a.m.