Syracuse takes aim at ACC cross country titles

On Friday morning, the Syracuse Orange cross-country teams will battle for the ACC Championship when the take to the course in Cary, NC. For the men, they will be looking to defend their team title and add their seventh ACC title in eight years. The Syracuse women will be looking to improve upon last year’s fifth place finish.

With the N.C. State Wolfpack expected to easily win the women’s race, Syracuse’s top runner Amanda Vestri will be looking for individual success. Vestri enters this race having won both competitions this Fall and will look to try and crack the top 5 this season. Syracuse is hoping she can pull a young group of Orange runners with her. Expected top runners Laura Dickinson and Rachel Bonner haven’t raced yet this season so newcomers Savannah Roark and Sarah Connelly will need to step up in their first major collegiate competition.

The Syracuse men enter this meet as underdogs. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are the one team to have defeated the Orange since they joined the ACC. The Irish are favored in this one with the Virginia Cavaliers considered strong contenders. In the first two meets Syracuse has been led by seniors JP Trojan and Joe Dragon. This duo along with Nathan Henderson give the Orange a formidable trio and as been the case in recent years, the title will be likely be decided by the 4th and 5th runners. Syracuse will be looking for their depth to prove to be a strength on Friday.

Friday’s races will be broadcast on the ACC Network Extra. The men’s 8k will start at 10 and the women’s 6k race starts at 11. We’ll have a full recap over the weekend.