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PHILADELPHIA – The Quakers’ men’s and women’s cross country teams will compete at the Main Line Invitational, hosted by Haverford College, on Friday, Sept. 18. The teams will run on the Fran Rizzo Cross Country Course, and the women compete at 4:45 p.m. in the 5k, followed by a 5:30 p.m. start for the men’s 4 mile.
Lindsay Yakaboski and Brian Gent will open their senior campaigns in Haverford, Pa. Yakaboski enters the season after setting a personal best in the 5K with a time of 19:52.5 in 2025, while Gent returns to the course for the first time since his freshman year. Both seniors will look to use their experience to help lead the team in continuing a strong start to the season.
Penn will see two newcomers, Lily Lyons and Brody Watt, at the 2026 Main Line Invitational.
2025 Main Line Invitational
At the 2025 Main Line Invitational, the men’s team captured first place in the team points, powered by four returning runners who finished inside the top 10. Kofi Fordjour, Shane Murphy, Esfan Daya and Vinay Raman each delivered strong performances, establishing a solid foundation for the Quakers’ success.
On the women’s side, Courtney Kaiser recorded the returning Quakers’ strongest individual finish, placing seventh with a time of 18:01.2. The women finished second overall in the team standings.
Competing on Friday for the Quakers
Men
Nathan Blades, Brian Gent, Joseph Socarras, Brody Watt
Women
L’Mio Edwards, Camille Jordan, Sara Khiri, Lily Lyons, Alexa Matora, Kelly Murray, Emily Reid, Aoife Shovlin, Lindsay Yakaboski
Last Time Out – Friar Invitational (Sept. 4)
Entering the season, the women’s team ranked sixth in the USTFCCCA Mid-Atlantic Region preseason poll, while the men’s team ranked seventh.
Allison Lee placed fifth with a time of 14:21.6 in her first collegiate race, followed by Izzy Rodriguez, who finished 10th. The performances helped the Quakers finish second in the team standings, just behind Providence College.
On the men’s side first-year Nick Mazzeo captured first place in the 6K in his collegiate debut, crossing the finish line in 18:01.2. His standout performance earned him Ivy League Athlete of the Week honors.
The Red and Blue also dominated the team standings, placing five runners among the top nine finishers. Chris Larnard led the group with a fourth-place finish, followed by Fordjour in sixth, Murphy in seventh, and Raman in ninth. The top five Quaker finishers were all separated by fewer than 25 seconds, helping Penn secure first place in the team standings.
Races in October
Oct. 2 – Paul Short Invitational
Oct. 16 – Pre-National Invitational
Oct. 30 – Ivy League Heps Championships
For the latest on Penn cross country, follow @PennTrack on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com
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