EMMITSBURG, Md. - The Towson University cross country team opened its fall campaign at the Mount St. Mary's 5K Duals on Friday, placing second overall behind Howard University. The Tigers were led by sophomore Anna Amato, who earned her first individual win.

"Exciting start to the season, with major improvements already evident compared to this time last year," said head coach Consandria Walker-Hall. "I'm looking forward to watching these ladies and Coach Lefever continue to ascend throughout the season. The best is yet to come!"

Distance assistant coach Zach Lefever made his debut as a Tiger on Friday. "I was super happy with how the team raced today," said Lefever. "The goal today was to find our teammates and work through the race and they did that very well. Anna was very patient, made the move at the right time and came out with a well deserved win. This will give us a lot of momentum starting the season."

Key Situations  

• Amato paced the Tigers, crossing the line in 18:54.50 to place first overall. 
• Rebekka Hillier followed, posting a time of 19:18.60 to finish fourth overall.  
• Senior Baara Stewart placed 12th, running 20:04.50. 
• Freshmen Kate Murphy (20:36.80) and Cameryn Loper (20:40.30) rounded out Towson's scoring five runners, placing 15th and 16th, respectively.  

  
Inside the Numbers  

• The top five scorers for the Black & Gold ran a combined average of 19:55, all finishing within 1:46 of each other.  
• Amato set a new personal best of 18:54.60; last year, she posted a time of 20:28.20 on the same course as she debuted as a Tiger.  
• Hillier continues her streak of placing within the scoring five for Towson. Last year, the then-sophomore led the Tigers in all regular season meets.  

  
Next Meet
Towson is slated to travel to Haverford College for the Main Line Invitational on Friday, September 18. 
 

-TowsonTigers.com-