The Notre Dame men’s and women’s cross country team opened their 2024 seasons in Valparaiso, Indiana, this past Friday. At the 35th Winrow Valparaiso Open, the No. 3 ranked women’s squad won the team title for the third straight year, while the No. 6 men’s squad finished second to Purdue.
Fort Wayne native and freshman Addison Knoblauch ran unattached and set the pace in the women’s 5k race, capturing the individual title in 17 minutes and 34.6 seconds. Five seconds off the leader, sophomore Reagan Riley started Notre Dame’s team scoring with a second-place finish (17:39.8). Fellow sophomore Kaleigh Gunsiorowski joined her in the top five, claiming fourth place (18:07.2). Another top-10 finisher, senior Paige Grant took ninth with a time of 18:26.2. Seniors Molly Grant (18:32.5) and Charlotte Turesson (18:36.5) rounded out the Irish competitors, snagging 13th and 15th place, respectively.
In team scoring, Notre Dame totaled 43 points to clear second-place Purdue by five points. Only Butler joined the Irish and Boilermakers beneath the 100-point threshold, scoring 65.
The men’s 6k race featured a first-place run by sophomore Brody Hartley (17:58.8). Junior Sam Rich followed by five-and-a-half seconds, securing third place in 18:04.3. Also inside the top 10, junior Izaiah Steury (18:11.2) and senior Ryan Schumacher (18:28.6) claimed sixth and 10th place, respectively, for the Irish.
Whereas nine teams scored runners in the women’s race, only five squads did so on the men’s side. Purdue bested Notre Dame’s 44 points with 35 to take home the team title.
Notre Dame’s cross country continues the afternoon of Sept. 20, when the National Catholic Invite returns to South Bend.
