Knights Men's, Women's Cross Country Impresses at Blazer Invitational

Knoxville, Md. -- On Friday evening, men's and women's cross country traveled to Othello Regional Park for the Blazer Twilight Invitational, their first meet of the season, with all six Knights runners finishing in the Top 15.

The men's squad was second overall, finishing just four points behind host Hood College.

Freshman Braden Berkey (Loch Raven) ran 19:07.2 in the men's 5K, missing out on the top spot by less than five seconds. It was also the third fastest time in school history. 

"Braden was in a pack of three for the lead in the first mile," said Knights cross country head coach Noah Hutton. "He made a big move and for the next two miles went back and forth with the eventual winner from Hood College."

Sam Smith (Eastern Tech) also ran impressively, turning in a time of 20:42.8, good enough to place him sixth in the race and Top 15 in CCBC Essex history. 

Izzy Romero (Archbishop Curley) ran 21:58.5 to finish 10th and Isaiah Halley (Overlea) ran a personal best 22:09.4 and finished 11th.

Patrick Bennett (Patapsco) finished 15th with a time of 23:43.9. 

Madison Magaha had a Top 20 time in school history with a time of 25:52.8. The freshman Patapsco graduate finished 10th.

"This group of young athletes is the hardest working and most dedicated team I have ever coached at CCBC Essex," said Hutton. "With the addition of another new runner to cross country next week, I am fully confident the men's team will continue to push each other and work hard to improve and finish the year strong."

Follow Knights cross country on Twitter @CCBCEssex_XC.