Entering his second season, coach Tom Leeser is looking for improvement for his Pennsylvania College of Technology men’s and women’s cross-country teams.

Both squads open their seasons at 6 p.m. Friday at Misericordia University.

A year ago at the United East Conference meet, the Wildcat men finished third among eight teams, with freshmen Mitchell Campbell, of Riegelsville, and Matthew Woolcock, of Oil City, placing third and seventh, respectively; both earning all-conference first-team honors and Campbell was the UE Rookie of the Year. The men’s squad also finished 25 of 32 at the NCAA Division III Mid-Atlantic Region race, the highest ever for the program.

Although there weren’t enough women to field a team at the conference meet, Skyelar Splain, of Liverpool, ended 16th individually, just missing the all-conference second team by two spots, and she was the team’s top finisher at regionals.

And all three return this season, which is a plus.

In addition to Campbell and Woolcock, also returning for the men are senior Noah Bowers, of Burnham; junior Alec Rees, of Centerport, New York; and sophomore Dillon Betts, of Manchester, New Jersey.

Joining those five are freshmen Holden Furey, of Williamsport, and Chase Ebeling, of Bellefonte.

“Mitch and Matt are both excellent leaders and could be a solid 1-2 at the front of our pack. Rees and Bowers bring experience and leadership as well. Chase, Holden, and Jacob were all well-coached and had successful high school careers,” Leeser said.

“On the men’s side, we are hoping to improve on last year’s third-place finish at the conference meet. We will need improvement from our returners and some contributions from the new guys. Everyone seems to be meshing well,” the coach said.

“Through the first few practices, I am pleased with how they are encouraging and pushing each other. (We need to) make sure our new runners build strength to jump from a 5K to an 8K distance and reduce the gap between our top runners and our numbers five, six, and seven. We will set the bar high and see what we can accomplish,” Leeser said.

On the women’s roster with Splain, a senior, are junior Kayleigh Miller, of Sayre, who ran in 2021; sophomore returnee Isabella Telford, of Greensburg; and freshmen Elaina Brady, of Big Cove Tannery; and Natalie Greiner, of Mt. Joy.

“Our returners did some solid off-season training and are motivated and enthusiastic about the season. Skyelar enters her second year of competitive running and has an opportunity to be among the top runners in the conference,” Leeser said. “Our women are excited to have five runners to begin the season. All three of our new faces have previous experience and should improve our team’s competitiveness. The goal is to improve individually and to grow together as a group.”

The keys to success for all of his harriers are “put in quality training, be patient, stay healthy, be strong mentally and compete,” Leeser added. “Each of our invitational meets should contain plenty of quality competition and provide opportunities for improvement.”

With the merger of the United East and Colonial States Athletic conferences completed over the summer, this year’s conference meets will take on a different look as 15 men’s and 16 women’s teams are scheduled to compete on Oct. 28 at Cairn University’s course in Langhorne.

Men’s teams are Penn College, Cairn University, Keystone College, Clarks Summit University, Gallaudet University, Penn State Harrisburg, St. Mary’s (Md.) College, Lancaster Bible College, Notre Dame (Md.) University, Bryn Athyn College, St. Elizabeth University, Penn State Abington, Penn State Berks, University of Valley Forge and Rosemont College.

Last year, the United East men’s title went to now-departed SUNY Morrisville, with Lancaster Bible junior Mitchell Gray, of Schaefferstown, taking a first-place finish and Runner of the Year honors. Valley Forge was crowned the winner of the CSAC Championship, with Bryn Athyn sophomore Rafe Williams, of Bryn Athyn, tabbed the Runner of the Year after placing first.

Women’s conference competition will include runners from all the same schools as the men, along with Cedar Crest College.

A year ago, the United East title went to St. Mary’s for the second-straight year as junior Madelaine Blaisdell, of Bethesda, Maryland, took first place and Runner of the Year honors. In the CSAC, the Valley Forge Patriots took team honors with sophomore Hannah Kopec, of Spring City, tabbed as Runner of the Year after placing first.

“The new, larger conference is exciting. Championships should be a high-quality D-III meet. This should eventually help us to be more competitive at our regional meet,” Leeser said.

Men’s/women’s cross-country

SCHEDULE

Friday, Sept. 1 — at Misericordia University, 6 p.m.

Saturday, Sept. 9 — at Mansfield University, 10:30 a.m.

Saturday, Sept. 16 — United East Preview at Cairn University, 10 a.m.