CANTON, N.Y. - The Norwich University men's cross country team made the jump to the eight-kilometer distance on Saturday afternoon, placing sixth overall at the 34th Ronald C. Hoffmann Invitational, hosted by St. Lawrence University on the Hoffmann Cross Country Course.
Competing in their second meet of the 2026 campaign and first 8K of the fall, the Cadets totaled 162 points in the eight-team scoring field. Norwich's scoring five averaged 29:19.3, with a five-runner spread of 2:59.8.
Junior Leo Circosta (Greensboro, Vt.) once again paced the maroon and gold, navigating the full 8K in 27:30.7 to finish 29th overall. Circosta reached the one-mile mark in 5:20.9 and crossed three miles in 16:27.2 before completing his second straight meet as Norwich's top finisher.
Senior Landon Pandolph (Peru, N.Y.) followed with another strong showing, finishing 46th overall in 28:17.8. Pandolph opened with a 5:22.5 first mile and moved through the three-mile split in 16:41.6, giving Norwich its second scoring position.
Behind the leading duo, the Cadets produced a tightly grouped middle pack.
Junior Jayquan Boswell (Dallas, Texas) crossed in 30:07.5 to take 72nd overall, while sophomore Zachary Chastain (Reisterstown, Md.) followed just 2.4 seconds later in 30:09.9. Freshman Levi Jones (South Londonderry, Vt.) completed Norwich's scoring five in his first collegiate 8K, placing 79th with a time of 30:30.4. Just 22.9 seconds separated Boswell, Chastain, and Jones across Norwich's third through fifth scoring positions.
Junior Matheu Dettenrieder (Tribes Hill, N.Y.) was the next Cadet across in 30:57.3, followed by sophomore Drew Nelson (Bagley, Minn.) in 31:45.6 to complete Norwich's top seven. The Cadets also received finishes from Alexander McBride (Chapel Hill, N.C.), Paulo Coello (San Pedro Sula, Honduras), Alex Calo (Attleboro, Mass.), and Austin Savee (Chesapeake, Va.) as 11 Norwich runners completed the course.
"The teams weren't at full strength today, but we had some good individual performances that show our fitness is coming along," said Head Coach Michael McGrane. "In our second meet of the season, the women raced their first 6k of the season to set a benchmark for the conference meet in six weeks. Likewise, the men raced their first 8k of the season. Several men notched new personal best marks today, and a few ran their first XC 8k. It was a good team effort today for both teams."
Queen's University controlled the team race, placing its five scoring runners among the first six collegiate finishers to post a perfect 15-point total. Host St. Lawrence finished second with 64 points, followed by Ottawa University with 88, Clarkson University with 96, and Plattsburgh State with 137 ahead of Norwich. Queen's sophomore Saul Taler captured the individual title in 25:31.4.
MEN'S LEADERS:
Norwich will return to action on Sunday, Oct. 4, traveling to New London, N.H., for the Maslan Invitational, hosted by GNAC foe Colby-Sawyer College at the Morris Trail. The men's 8K is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. and will give the Cadets an early look at the course that will also host the 2026 GNAC Championships on Sunday, Nov. 1.
