Rotich, Bartels, Newton Dazzle at Cross Country's Season Opener

Friday, September 1

Belmont Plateau, Philadelphia, PA

W: 4:15 p.m. / M: 4:45 p.m.

Tulane University

Temple University XC Invitational

Rotich, Bartels, Newton Dazzle at Cross Country's Season Opener

Sep 5, 2017 | Cross Country

Men's results
Women's results

PHILADELPHIA, PA. -- The Green Wave cross country squad opened its 2017 season on Friday, September 1 at the Temple University Cross Country Invitational at Belmont Plateau Park with a bang, finishing with three runners in the top ten overall and recording two third-place team finishes.

"The meet was a good opportunity to test our team on the course where we'll run the conference championship meet," associate head coach Michael Nussa said. "For both teams, we were hoping for a better result. We learned a lot about where we are as a team right now, and we know what we need to work on over the next few weeks."

Men's team
Junior Emmanuel Rotich, following his tremendous 2016 season and 2017 summer, started the year in impressive fashion, winning the men's 8km (4.97 miles) race with a time of 26:00.6. Rotich, who was named Runner of the Year by the Louisiana Sports Writer's Association last year, won by a gap of 10.6 seconds.

"Emmanuel did a nice job executing a conservative race plan today, and he was able to start his season off with a win," Nussa said.

Senior Moses Aloiloi finished 14th with a time of 27:20.5, while fellow countryman junior Joshua Cheruyot earned a 20th place finish (28:10.6). Sophomore Carlos Zervigon finished 18th with a time of 27:44.8, helping the men's squad finish third overall (69 points).

Women's team
Seniors Lauren Bartels and Emma Newton paced the women's squad in the 6km (3.73 miles) event, finishing third (22:16.6) and sixth (22:30.5), respectively. The women's side finished third overall wih 52 points.

"Lauren got off to a nice start," Nussa said. "She moved a little late to be able to contend for the win, but it was a good first race."

Sophomore Mckenzie Melius finished 13th with a time of 23:42,7, while freshman newcomer Bridgid Selfors earned a 14th place finish (23:48.4).

Up next
Tulane is set to compete at the Allstate Sugar Bowl Cross Country Festival this Saturday at Lafreniere Park in Metairie, La. The men take off at 8:25 a.m., while the women's hit the course at 8:50 a.m.

For the latest in cross country news, fans can follow along on Twitter (@GreenWaveXCTF) or find the team on Facebook. Follow Tulane Athletics on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and @TulaneAthletics on Snapchat.