Tag: Men’s Cross Country, Women’s Cross Country

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – Fresh off their first SSC Title in program history, the Nova Southeastern Women’s Cross-Country team made history again on Saturday morning at the NCAA South Region Championship. NSU punched their ticket as a team to the program’s first NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships. Jillian Thorning, the SSC Individual Champion was the highest finisher for the Sharks, finishing fourth with a time of 21:14.65.  

Head Coach Jonathan Carter – As a coach, you do everything in your coaching ability to put your athletes in a position to be successful. Today displayed that our teams understood the assignment of giving it their all to be successful. Our goal for the men’s team was to perform within the top 15 teams. We fell one place short of that but the men’s team carried out the assignment. As for the women the message was to compete the way you have all season. Eden Toal had some complications near the finish but there was no quit in her as she gave every bit of her toughness to finish the race and helped the women’s team advance to the National Championship. Coach Debastos and I are extremely proud to be the coaches of this team. They understand the benefits of gritting and grinding. GO SHARKS!!!!!!

 (Women’s 6K) 

Thorning’s fourth-place finish landed her a spot on the All-Region team. 

Leena Saidi and Isabella Grant joined Thorning on the All-Region team, finishing eighth and 19th respectively.  

Ally Jakubiak wasn’t too far behind, finishing 26th with a time of 22:54.75. 

Eden Toal would round out the top five finishers for NSU with a gutsy finish to secure the NCAA Championship berth for the Sharks.   
 

 (Men’s 10K) 

Jaime Blazquez ended his season on a high note, leading NSU and finishing 37th with a time of 32:38.56. 

Marc Gonzalez and Will Watson rounded out the top three finishers for the Sharks, finishing 62nd and 76th respectively.  

The Nova Southeastern Women’s Cross Country team will travel to Sacramento, CA. to race at the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championship on Saturday, November 23rd. 

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – After securing the program’s first SSC Title on the women’s side, the Sharks look to carry that momentum into Saturday’s NCAA South Region Championship race. 

The men are scheduled to race at 10:00 a.m., and the women are set to begin racing at 11:15 a.m.  

On the men’s side, Jaime Blazquez, Marc Gonzalez, and Will Watson have been at the forefront of the Sharks attack. Blazquez was the first Shark across the line at the SSC Cross Country Championships, finishing 21st with a time of 26:03.3. Gonzalez and Watson rounded out the top three finishers for the Sharks, finishing 40th and 44th respectively. Jan Schmied and Ryan Elfring have also played a vital role in the Sharks success this season. 

On the women’s side, the Sharks five-headed dragon, comprised of Jillian Thorning, Leena Saidi, Eden Toal, Ally Jakubiak, and Isabella Grant led the Sharks to the first Sunshine State Conference Championship in school history. Thorning, the SSC Runner of the Year, won the meet with a time of 21:45.2 becoming the third SSC Women’s Cross Country Individual Champion in Nova Southeastern history to go along with an All-SSC First Team selection. Saidi and Toal also tabbed a spot on the All-SSC first team after their second and fourth place finishes at the conference championships. Jakubiak and Grant weren’t too far behind, finishing 10th and 14th, respectively en route to an All-SSC Second Team selection. Bridget McGrath and Amanda Stone will complete the list of Sharks competing at the South Region Championship. 

For complete coverage of Saturday’s action, visit the schedule page on NSUSharks.com, or follow the Sharks on Instagram and Twitter at @NSU_XCTF.   

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LAKELAND, Fla. – The Sharks look to carry their momentum into the SSC Cross Country Championships in Lakeland, FL on Friday, October 25th.  

The men are scheduled to race at 7:45 a.m. and the women are scheduled at 8:45 a.m.  

“The time has come for us to showcase our talent at the conference level,” stated Head Coach Jonathan Carter. 

Jaime Blazquez and Will Watson have spearheaded the Sharks throughout the season. Blazquez is coming off a stellar performance in the 8K at the UAH Chargers Invitational. The junior ran a blazing time of 25:25.1 which catapulted him to the fifth fastest 8K time in program history. Watson has also been impressive, running a personal best in both the 6K and 8K to go along with two top 20 finishes earlier in the season at the STU Bobcat Open #2 and the Ave Maria Invitational.

On the women’s side, NSU looks to build off of last year’s second place team finish. With the addition of Jillian Thorning, the 2024 SSC Runner of the Year, the Sharks are primed to do so. Thorning, who’s coming off a stellar outing at the UAH Charger XC Invitational has finished in the top 10 in all four meets she’s appeared in. Leena Saidi, Eden Toal, and Ally Jakubiak, the driving forces behind last year’s second place team finish have also been impressive all season long and look to carry that momentum into tomorrow morning’s championship.  

For complete coverage of Saturday’s action, visit the schedule page on NSUSharks.com, or follow the Sharks on Instagram and Twitter at @NSU_XCTF.  

Click HERE for the live results. 

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HUNTSVILLE, ALA. – The Nova Southeastern Men’s and Women’s Cross-Country teams gear up for the SSC Cross Country Championships with one final meet at UAH Chargers XC Invitational. Jillian Thorning led the way for NSU on the women’s side, finishing 6th with a time of 21:04.80, ranking her second in school history in the 6k. Thorning’s performance helped lead the Sharks to a fourth place team finish. On the Men’s side, the Sharks placed 26th with Jaime Blazquez being the first Shark across the line. 
    

 (Women’s 6k)      

• Leena Saidi was right behind Thorning, placing 13th, running a time of 21:23.2.     

 (Men’s 8k)      

     
    
Head Coach Jonathan Carter – The teams stepped up and performed in a very challenging field today. Coach Debastos and I are extremely proud of  how well the teams ran and we are looking forward to our upcoming conference championship.
    

      

The Sharks will be back in action at the SSC Cross Country Championship on Friday, October 25th in Lakeland, Fla. 

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AVE MARIA, FLA. – The Nova Southeastern Men’s and Women’s Cross-Country teams competed at the Ave Maria Invitational. On the women’s side, NSU finished in second place with three top-10 finishers including Jillian Thorning, who finished as runner-up. On the Men’s side, the Sharks placed in fifth with Jaime Blazquez finishing in the top 10. 
    

(Women’s 6k)      

(Men’s 8k)      

     
    
Head Coach Jonathan Carter – Today’s races gave us an opportunity to see how our teams performed having a full men’s and women’s team. We haven’t ran our full teams since September 6th and missed the opportunity to run a full team last weekend due to the hurricane. We will use the upcoming race in Huntsville to sharpen up and become race-ready for the SSC Championship. 
     

      

The Sharks will be back next Saturday, October 12th for the UAH Charger Invitational.     

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MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern Men’s and Women’s Cross-Country teams competed at the STU Bobcat Open 2. On the women’s side, NSU finished in second place with five top 10 finishers including Amanda Stone, who placed fourth. On the Men’s side, the Sharks placed third with three top 20 finishers including William Watson, who placed 13th. 
    

(Women’s 6k)      

(Men’s 6k)      

     
    
Head Coach Jonathan Carter –  The teams were prepared to compete at FSU this weekend but due to Hurricane Helene the meet was canceled. So it was great to see that  the teams remained focused and took advantage of an opportunity to compete. We saw a few athletes on both teams for this meet but we will be at full strength next week at Ave Maria. 
     

      

The Sharks will return to racing on Friday, October 5th for the Ave Maria Invitational.     

To stay up-to-date on Sharks Cross Country, be sure to follow on Instagram and Twitter at NSU_XCTF.  

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MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern Men’s and Women’s Cross-Country teams competed at the STU Bobcat Invitational on Saturday evening. On the women’s side, NSU finished in third place with four top-20 finishers including Bella Ascone, who placed 12th. On the Men’s side, the Sharks did not place. 
    

(Women’s 5k)      

(Men’s 8k)      

      

The Sharks will be back in action on Friday, Sep. 27 for the FSU XC Invitational.     

To stay up-to-date on Sharks Cross Country, be sure to follow on Instagram and Twitter at NSU_XCTF.  

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LAKELAND, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern Men’s and Women’s Cross-Country teams opened their 2024 campaign at the Holloway Park Collegiate XC Opener this morning. On the women’s side, NSU finished in first place with three top 10 finishers including Leena Saidi, who won the meet. On the Men’s side, the Sharks earned a fifth place team finish.
   

(Women’s 4.2k)     

(Men’s 6k)     

    
   
Head Coach Jonathan Carter – Today our women provided a very good showing of our capabilities. We were led by our veterans Leena Saidi, Eden Toal and a newcomer Jillian Thorning. We will use today’s win as a momentum builder for the season. As for our men we were led by Freshman Marc Gonzalez. He displayed great confidence throughout the race which assisted his teammates to grind out some good results. Both teams will be working hard getting prepared for our next meet. 
    

     

The Sharks will be back Friday, Sep. 27 for the FSU XC Invitational.    

To stay up-to-date on Sharks Cross Country, be sure to follow on Instagram and Twitter at NSU_XCTF. 

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MELBOURNE, Fla. – The Sunshine State Conference released its 2024 Cross Country Preseason Coaches’ Poll on Monday morning. Nova Southeastern was projected to finish fourth on the men’s side and second on the women’s side. The Sharks men’s and women’s teams collected 39 and 44 total points respectively, with the women also receiving two first-place votes. 

Last season on the women’s side, NSU showcased a dominant performance at the Sunshine State Conference Cross Country Championship, which earned them a second-place finish, their highest finish since the program captured second place at the 2012 SSC Cross Country Championships. Leena Saidi led the way, running an impressive time of 21:40.0 in the 6k en route to a second-place finish. Eden Toal and Ally Jakubiak were right behind her, finishing fifth (22:10.9) and sixth (22:11.4) respectively.  

On the men’s side, Marcus Tortorella led NSU last season, Tortorella was the highest finisher for the Sharks at the Sunshine State Conference Cross Country Championships, finishing 24th with a time of 26:02.7. 

Below are the full results of the 2024 SSC preseason coaches’ poll. Coaches cannot vote for their teams (points: 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1, first-place votes in parentheses).    

2024 SSC MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY PRESEASON COACHES POLL 

Rank	Team	Total (First Place Votes)
1	Florida Southern	64 (8)
2	Embry-Riddle	55 (1)
3	Tampa	52
4	Nova Southeastern	39
5	Palm Beach Atlantic	36
6	Lynn	28
T7	Barry	19
T7	Florida Tech	19
9	Saint Leo	12

 

2024 SSC WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY PRESEASON COACHES POLL

Rank	School	Total (First Place Votes)
1	Tampa	48 (6)
2	Nova Southeastern	44 (2)
3	Embry-Riddle	32
4	Florida Southern	31
5	Palm Beach Atlantic	26
6	Lynn	18
7	Barry	15
8	Saint Leo	10

The Nova Southeastern Sharks kick off their 2024 season at the Holloway Park Collegiate XC Opener in Lakeland, Fla. on Friday, Sept. 6.

To stay up-to-date on Sharks Cross Country, be sure to follow on Instagram and Twitter at NSU_XCTF.   

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – After a stellar 2023 campaign, Head Coach Jonathan Carter and the Nova Southeastern Men’s and Women’s Cross-Country programs have officially released their 2024 schedule. 

The Sharks will kick off the season at the Holloway Park Collegiate XC Opener in Lakeland, Fla. on Friday, Sept. 6, the first of four regular season races.  

“As we head into year two, we wanted to put together a schedule that would build off our previous year’s success,” stated Head Coach Jonathan Carter. “Our women’s team finished 2nd, and our men’s team placed 5th at last year’s SSC XC Championship, so we decided to start our season off at the site of the 2024 SSC Championship. Which in turn will give our team the opportunity to get familiar with the course early in the year. Later in the season, we will be traveling to the UAH Charger Invitational, a meet that we’re excited to compete in. The meet will be run on the site of the NCAA Division II South Regional championship at John Hunt Park and will have teams from the GSC conference and several other great schools. All in all, we feel very confident that this schedule will prepare our team on our quest to be the best.” 

After a brief hiatus, the Sharks will return to racing on September 27th at the FSU XC Invite in Tallahassee. NSU will then travel to Ave Maria for the Ave Maria Invitational on Oct. 5 before embarking on a long road trip to close out regular season at the UAH Charger Invitational on Oct. 12 in Huntsville, Ala.  

The Sunshine State Conference Championship race is on Sat., Oct. 25, in Lakeland, Fla. while the NCAA South Region Meet is set for Sat., Nov. 9, and the NCAA National Championship meet is on Nov. 23 in Sacramento, CA. 

On the women’s side, the Sharks are coming off an impressive second place finish at last year’s SSC Cross Country Championship led by top 10 finishes from returners, Leena Saidi, Ally Jakubiak, and Eden Toal. 

Marcus Tortorella and Jan Schmied look to lead the Sharks on the men’s side.  
 

To stay up-to-date on Sharks Cross Country, be sure to follow on Instagram and Twitter at NSU_XCTF.    

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