The University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg men's and women's cross country teams turned in an impressive showing at Gettysburg, with all eight Bobcat runners recording either lifetime or season-best performances on one of the region's fastest courses.
Freshman Edir Sid Mohand highlighted the day for Pitt-Greensburg, finishing 253rd overall in the men's 8-kilometer race with a time of 28:11.7. His performance ranks as the fourth-fastest 8K time in program history, surpassing head coach Jeremy Eshleman's personal mark by four seconds.
"Edir just raced one of the best races since I've been a coach here," said Eshleman. "With his time of 28:11, that puts him fourth-fastest in school history, four seconds ahead of me. He went out hard and hung with the pack. I couldn't have asked for a better race from him."
Senior Anthony Zona followed with a time of 30:54.6 to finish 392nd overall, while freshman Conor Haines completed the men's lineup, placing 462nd in 40:46.9.
On the women's side, sophomore Jocelyn Bielak led the Bobcats in the 6-kilometer race, finishing 418th overall with a time of 32:38.4.
Sophomore Carinna Darragh continued her strong season, finishing 425th with a time of 33:44.3. Freshman Elaina Funk was close behind, crossing the line in 33:52.1 to place 427th overall, just 7.8 seconds behind Darragh.
Freshman Madison Martino finished 441st with a time of 38:35.2, while sophomore Caroline Davis rounded out the women's lineup in 444th place with a time of 40:57.6.
Eshleman praised the team's overall effort and the opportunity to compete against strong competition on Gettysburg's fast course.
"Every runner today ran either a lifetime PR or a season PR," Eshleman said. "That's what's great about coming to Gettysburg. It's a super fast course with some of the best schools in the region and country."
Eshleman also highlighted Darragh's consistency and the continued development of the team's freshmen.
"Carinna is having a great season. She just keeps getting PRs every week," Eshleman said. "I'm also really proud of the freshmen, Elaina, Madison and Conor, as they continue learning the 6K and 8K distances. All three recorded PRs today."
With eight personal or season-best performances and Sid Mohand moving into fourth place on the program's all-time 8K list, the Bobcats will carry momentum into the postseason.
Pitt-Greensburg will return to action on Saturday, October 31, at the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) Cross Country Championships, where the Bobcats will look to build on their strong performances at Gettysburg.
