GRANTHAM, Pa.–Rory Lieberman and Matthew Santana finished first and second, and two more Dutchmen placed in the top 10 to lead the Lebanon Valley College Men's Cross Country Team to its first team title at the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Championships on Saturday, Nov. 2, at Messiah University. LVC scored 34 points followed by Misericordia University in second with 71 points and host Messiah University in third with 77.

Lieberman earned Runner of the Year with a winning time of 26:05.6, becoming only the second Dutchman to win the event. LVC Athletic Hall of Fame member Jeff Koegel won the individual title 30 years ago. Lieberman finished six seconds ahead of Santana—last season's MAC Rookie of the Year—who ran the course in 26:11.1 and bested the third-place runner by 11 seconds.

Joe Chukoskie raced to seventh place in 26:48.5, while Eric Shelton crossed the line in eighth at 26:51.1. The four runners made the All-MAC First Team by finishing in the top 10. Santana and Chukoskie earned All-MAC honors for the second straight year.

Andrew Namatka captured MAC Rookie of the Year and All-MAC Second Team status with a 16th-place finish in 27:15.7. Three Dutchmen achieved All-MAC Third Team honors—Sam Rothstein in 23rd place (27:33.7), Dylan Lenhart in 26th (27:35.0), and Donnie Miller in 29th (27:46.4). Rothstein achieved All-MAC recognition for the second time, while Namatka, Lenhart, and Miller accomplished the feat for the first time in their careers.

LVC's eight All-Conference honorees established a new program record for the Dutchmen.

Elijah McKell raced to 42nd with a time of 28:10.7, followed closely by Lukas Walko in 44th who finished in 28:20.0. Alec Di Cesare ran to 51st in 28:34.2, and Liam Allen rounded out the LVC racers with a 57th-place performance in 28:44.6. All 12 LVC competitors finished in the top 60 of the 137-person field.

"Our men showed some real grit and toughness. Together, they achieved the first conference title in program history today. It was etxtremely special to watch them come together for each other. Having athletes acheive both Runner of the Year and Rookie of the Year was really something. We are extremely excited to see what they can accomplish in two weeks at the regional meet," said Noah Griffin, LVC Men's Cross Country Assistant Coach.

Up Next
 
LVC will travel to Lock Haven University for the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships on Saturday, Nov. 16.

2024 MAC MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY AWARDS
Team Champion: Lebanon Valley College
Runner of the Year / Individual Champion: Rory Lieberman, Lebanon Valley College
Rookie of the Year: Andrew Namatka, Lebanon Valley College
Coach of the Year: James O'Brien, Lebanon Valley College

LVC Finishers

PL	NAME	TIME
1	Rory Lieberman	26:05.6
2	Matthew Santana	26:11.1
7	Joe Chukoskie	26:48.5
8	Eric Shelton	26:51.1
16	Andrew Namatka	27:15.7
23	Sam Rothstein	27:33.7
26	Dylan Lenhart	27:35.0
29	Donnie Miller	27:46.4
42	Elijah McKell	28:10.7
44	Lukas Walko	28:20.0
51	Alec Di Cesare	28:34.2
57	Liam Allen	28:44.6

LVC All-MAC Honorees
Rory Lieberman, First Team
Matthew Santana, First Team
Joe Chukoskie, First Team
Eric Shelton, First Team
Andrew Namatka, Second Team
Sam Rothstein, Third Team
Dylan Lenhart, Third Team
Donnie Miller, Third Team

See the full All-MAC teams on the MAC website at gomacsports.com.