EMMITSBURG, Md. - The Towson University cross country team is set to open its 2026 campaign at the Mount 5K Duals, hosted by Mount St. Mary's. The Tigers will begin their season in Emmitsburg for the second consecutive year, with the meet serving as their lone competition in Maryland this season.
Race Information
Course: Mount St. Mary East Campus
Distance: 5k
Time: 4 p.m.
Field: Towson will be joined by Goucher, Howard, Mount St. Mary's, UMBC and Washington AdventistÂ
Roster
Fresh Faces
The team will be welcoming six new faces to the squad this year;
Olivia Donmoyer,
Samia Ghazaz,
Angeleah Lepre,
Cameryn Loper,
Kate Murphy and
Sifen Tusse. Donmoyer, Ghazaz, Loper, Murphy and Tusse will be making their debut as Tigers on Friday. Â
Lefever Rising
The Tigers have also added a new addition to the cross country coaching staff this year. In July, head coach
Consandria Walker-Hall announced the hire of
Zach Lefever as the distance assistant coach for the Black & Gold. Lefever joins Towson after two seasons as an assistant coach at LaSalle University, where he played a key role in the development and recruitment of seven NCAA qualifiers, 17 all-conference performers and five school record holders. Â
Last Season Recap
Towson opened its fall campaign last August at the Mount 5k Duals hosted by Mount St. Mary's. The Tigers placed fourth overall out of eight teams after accumulating 104 points, highlighted by sophomore
Rebekka Hillier, who placed fifth out of 91 runners after clocking 18:50.29.
In September, the Tigers captured their first team title of the season at the University of Delaware Invite, finishing first overall with 23 points - nine ahead of regionally ranked Delaware. Towson's top five runners all finished inside the top 10 individually and crossed the line within 24 seconds of each other, averaging 19:54 as a group. Hillier paced the squad once again, placing second overall at 19:38.80, followed by
Baara Stewart in third at 19:53.80.
On October 3, Towson attended the 51st annual Paul Short Run, hosted by Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The Tigers placed 24th out of 39 teams. The eight runners representing the Black & Gold ran an average 6k time of 23:03.90, improving last year's average of 23:22.90 on the same course. All returning runners recorded personal bests, while Hillier led the way again with a time of 22:34.70, improving her previous course best by over a minute.
Towson closed out the regular season at the Aubrey Shenk Invitational in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, placing fifth out of 33 teams with a total of 126 points. Hillier once again led the Tigers, placing 14th in a field of 300 runners and setting a personal best of 22:16.60. The Tigers' top five runners averaged 22:50 and finished within 58 seconds of one another.
At the CAA Championship, the Tigers combined to total 255 points, good enough for ninth place. Towson's turnout marked the best performance the team delivered in four years, featuring a lineup that included five freshmen.
Up Next
The Tigers are slated to travel to Haverford, Pennsylvania for the Main Line Invitational hosted by Haverford College on Friday, September 18. Â
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