Cross Country at the Suffolk Short Course Classic
Saturday, August 30 | Women's 3k, 10 a.m. | Men's 5k, 10:45 a.m.
Highland Park (Mark Coogan Course) | Attleboro, Mass. 

WHAT TO KNOW 
•    The Babson men's and women's cross country teams will kick off the 2025 campaign at the Suffolk Short Course Classic on the Mark Coogan Course inside Highland Park on Saturday morning. 
•    The Beavers will be competing in the event for the first time while opening their season at Highland Park for the fifth straight year. 
•    This is the fourth edition of the Suffolk Short Course Classic, which was held on the opening weekend of the season at Franklin Park in Boston from 2021-23.

LAST TIME AT HIGHLAND PARK
•    Both the Babson men and women finished fifth among 10 teams on the Mark Coogan Course at the 10th Annual Wheaton & Babson Opener on August 31, 2024. 
•    Sophomore Nick Yacoub posted a time of 15:55 in the men's 5k, classmate Daniel Garcia came in 19th overall in a time of 16:39, and junior Brian Gall placed 22nd in a time of 16:43 for the Beavers, who totaled 117 points to finish behind Holy Cross (32 points), Stonehill (85), Brandeis (84) and Bridgewater State (107). 
•    Sophomore Shriya Peddi came in ninth in her collegiate debut recording a time of 11:59 in the women's 3k, while classmate Sophia Draxler (12:17) and Ali Thomas '25 (12:21) came in 24th and 26th, respectively for the Beavers, who totaled 114 points to finish behind Holy Cross (32 points), Suffolk (57), Brandeis (82) and Stonehill (98). 

ABOUT THE BABSON WOMEN
•    The Beavers return six of their top six runners and 10 harriers in all from a team that placed seventh at the NEWMAC Championships and 16th at the NCAA East Regionals in 2024. 
•    Peddi was Babson's top finisher in five of six races, which included recording her top 6k time of the year at the Connecticut College Invitational (23:09) and placing 39th in her conference championship debut, while senior Chloe Clifford finished 45th with a time of 24:25 at the NEWMAC Championship and a team-best 70th with a time of 24:20 at the NCAA regionals. 
•    Draxler (24:49) and senior Alexandra Kirkpatrick (24:39) both posted top-60 results at the league meet as the Green and White recorded its best finish and lowest point total at the NEWMAC Championship since 2018.

ABOUT THE BABSON MEN
•    The Beavers return eight runners but also must replace four seasoned veterans including a pair of national championship qualifiers from a team that placed third at the NEWMAC meet and a program-best sixth at the NCAA East Regionals last season. 
•    Yacoub put together a terrific rookie campaign finishing 13th to earn All-NEWMAC honors at the league meet and 32nd two weeks later to become one of three Babson harriers to garner all-region accolades. 
•    Junior Jonathan Hanscom is coming off a breakout 2024 campaign that saw him finish 41st with a career-best time of 26:59 at the conference championship, classmate Almond Nickerson IV recorded his second fastest time of the year (27:19) at the NCAA East Regional Championship, and Gall placed 42nd at the NEWMAC Championship with a career-best time of 26:59. 

ABOUT THE FIELD
•    The women's 3k race will feature 17 teams including Division I programs Holy Cross, New Hampshire and Northeastern, and host Suffolk, which is ranked fourth in the USTFCCCA East Region preseason poll. 
•    The men's 5k race features a pair of Division I squads (Holy Cross, New Hampshire) and a trio of teams that earned a spot in the USTFCCCA East Region preseason rankings (No. 3 WPI, No. 7 Babson, No. 9 Suffolk). 

REWRITING THE RECORD BOOKS
•    Under the direction of 22nd-year head coach Russ Brennen, the Beavers put together a terrific 2024 campaign that included both school records and program firsts. 
•    Anthony Rodriguez '24 M'25 and Julian Ivarra '25 gave the Babson men two NCAA Championship qualifiers in the same season for the first time in school history, and Rodriguez finished 38th overall to become the program's first All-America honoree. 
•    The trio of Rodriguez, Ivarra and Yacoub gave the Beavers three all-conference honorees for the first time since 1994 and three all-region selections for the first time in program history. 
•    In addition to the Babson men recording their top regional finish, the women's squad posted its lowest point total at the NCAA regionals and matched the the 2022 team for the best finish in program history. 

UP NEXT
•    Babson will return to action on Saturday, September 20, when they travel to the UMass Dartmouth Invitational.