Youth can often be a disadvantage to collegiate cross-country teams, but, if Saturday's victories at the Lou Onesty Invitational in Charlottesville, Va., are any indication, a plethora of young runners on both the No. 11 women's and No. 20 men's squads are poised to lead the Blue Devils to one of their most competitive seasons ever.
Nowhere was the triumph of youth more evident than in the women's race, where five freshmen led Duke (29 points) to a solid victory over 10 teams, including William & Mary (47 points) and No. 16 Virginia (52 points).
"Overall, this was a very good start to the season," head coach Jan Ogilvie said. "There were very few negatives today."
Leading the charge was freshman Caroline Bierbaum, who finished first overall in a time of 16:59, which is also a personal record. In her first collegiate race, Bierbaum established an early lead and distanced herself from the rest of the pack over the 5,000-meter course.
"I was really happy with my time," Bierbaum said. "I was a little worried that I came out too fast, but I was able to keep the lead."
Bierbaum's closest competition was fellow freshman Clara Horowitz, who finished in 17:32, good for second overall. Rounding out the Blue Devils' top-5 runners were freshmen Shannon Rowbury (6th; 17:58), Sally Meyerhoff (8th; 18:05) and Laura Stanley (12th; 18:08).
Last year's top runners, sophomores Paige Miller and Paris Edwards, also had solid races, finishing in 14th and 16th places, respectively.
"I think this is a good indication of where we'll be later in the season," Ogilvie said. "We'll only get stronger as the season goes along."
In addition to the women's dominance, the men's squad also had a very strong day. Duke (26 points) edged No. 16 William & Mary (34 points) and soundly defeated third-place Virginia (77 points) by placing five runners in the top 10.
"They gave us a heck of a fight," said head coach Norm Ogilvie of the Tribe. "They put out a strong team, and it was a real battle out there."
The men were led by the one-two punch of junior Chris Williams, who finished the 8,000-meter course first overall in a time of 24:28, and sophomore Michael Hatch, who finished second overall just behind Williams in 24:29.
"I was really happy the with race," Williams said. "Mike and I have been running together a lot. It was great to be one-two with a teammate, but I wish we both could have been first."
William & Mary swept the third through fifth slots to make the race competitive, but sophomore Nick Schneider (6th; 24:50), senior captain Jared Moore (7th; 24:55) and sophomore Ian Cronin (10th; 25:13) all finished in the top 10 to secure the Blue Devils' victory.
Cronin, who has traditionally been strongest in middle-distance races, pleased his coach with his performance.
"This was clearly the best cross-country race that Ian has ever had," Norm Ogilvie said. "It was great to see him step up as the fifth man."
The next race for the men is the Great American Cross Country Festival in Charlotte at the end of September, while the women will run a split-squad meet that weekend in Charlotte and at the Stanford Invitational in Palo Alto, Calif.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.