NEW CASTLE, Pa. (pacathletics.org) - In a remarkably close race that saw the top five teams separated by a mere 10 points, Franciscan University edged out the pack to claim the 2024 Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Men's Cross Country Championship, the fourth title in the last five championships for the Barons. The meet was held at the Lawrence County Fairgrounds in New Castle, Pa.

In the 67th overall cross country championship in PAC history, Franciscan totaled 67 points, just one point in front of runner-up Geneva College with 68 and three points ahead of defending champion Saint Vincent College (70). Rounding out the tightly-packed top five was Washington & Jefferson College with 75 points and Grove City College with 77 points.

Coming in sixth place was Allegheny College with 148 points, followed by Westminster College in seventh (235), Waynesburg University in eighth (256), Chatham University in ninth (258) and Bethany College (305). Thiel College only ran as individuals at the meet.

Franciscan's championship was fueled by a balanced team effort, with four runners placing in the top 17 to earn All-PAC, while their fifth scoring runner missed all-conference recognition by one spot after crossing in 22nd.

The PAC Runner of the Year Award was won by Saint Vincent graduate student Tim Patterson (Butler, Pa./Butler). He pulled away from a three-man pack to cross the finish line in first with a victorious time of 25:35.10, becoming the first SVC runner to win the individual conference title since Will Green in 2019 and sixth Bearcat overall to take the top spot at Championships. It is the third consecutive top-three finish for Patterson, who was third in 2023 and second in the 2022 race.

Also earning his third straight top-three placement was Geneva senior Kevin Arseneaux (Yarmouth Port, Mass./Dennis-Yarmouth Regional). The third-place finisher in 2022 before winning the PAC crown a year ago, Arseneaux took runner-up distinction this year. In earning another First Team All-PAC award, he finished the 8k course in 25:42.50.

Third place went to W&J sophomore Dominic Flitcraft (Aliquipa, Pa./Hopewell). The 2023 PAC Newcomer of the Year after placing second a season ago earned his second First Team All-PAC award after finishing with a time of 25:54.60. He was followed across the finish line by two W&J teammates, as senior Brock Pennington (North East, Pa./North East) took fourth place for the second year in a row and senior Julian Paul (Pittsburgh, Pa./Montou) came in fifth place.

The top runner for the champion Franciscan was junior Andrew Madigan (Lawrenceville, N.J./The Wilberforce School), who placed sixth overall, and the first team all-conference runners were rounded out by Grove City junior Michael Singley (Duncannon, Pa./Susquenita) in seventh. 

Two other Franciscan runners would earn Second Team All-PAC to help the championship drive, including graduate student Miguel Daez (Sterling, Va./Holy Family Homeschool) in eighth place and senior Conal Delaney (Green Bay, Wis./Mother of Divine Grace) in 14th place.

The PAC Newcomer of the Year award, which goes to the highest finishing first-year runner, went to Geneva freshman Ethan Haring (Wexford, Pa./Eden Christian Academy). He was the first freshman to cross the finish line, taking 16th place in 26:50.50 to also earn Honorable Mention All-PAC status. Haring is the first Geneva runner to earn the Newcomer award.

The PAC Coach of the Year honor went to Franciscan's Dr. Dan Kuebler. It's the third time in the last five championships Kuebler has been recognized by the conference.

The top seven finishers in both the men's and women's races received All-PAC First Team recognition, while runners finishing eighth through 14th earned All-PAC Second Team honors. Runners finishing 15th through 21st received All-PAC Honorable Mention recognition. 

The PAC also released its 2024 PAC Sportsmanship Team Saturday. The PAC Sportsmanship Teams were established to recognize student-athletes who have distinguished themselves through demonstrated acts of sportsmanship and ethical behavior and are an ongoing effort to recognize and encourage positive sportsmanship among all PAC teams.

The 10 Division III regional championships are scheduled for Saturday, November 16. Bethany, Chatham, Geneva, Grove City, Saint Vincent, Thiel, W&J, Waynesburg and Westminster will compete in the Mid-Atlantic region, while Allegheny and Franciscan will compete in the Great Lakes region. The Division III Mid-Atlantic Championships will be held at Lock Haven University's West Branch Cross Country Course, while the Division III Great Lakes Championships will be held in Shelbyville, Indiana at Blue River Park. 

The 2025 Division III Championships are scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 23 at Lavern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center in Terre Haute, Indiana. 

 

First Team All-PAC
Name	School	Place	Year	Hometown/High School
Tim Patterson	Saint Vincent	1st	Grad.	Butler, Pa./Butler
Kevin Arseneaux	Geneva	2nd	Sr.	Yarmouth Port, Mass./Dennis-Yarmouth Regional
Dominic Flitcraft	W&J	3rd	So.	Aliquippa, Pa./Hopewell
Brock Pennington	W&J	4th	Sr.	North East, Pa./North East
Julian Paul	W&J	5th	Sr.	Pittsburgh, Pa./Montour
Andrew Madigan	Franciscan	6th	Jr.	Lawrenceville, N.J./The Wilberforce School
Michael Singley	Grove City	7th	Jr.	Duncannon, Pa./Susquenita