NEWARK, NJ – Manhattan Men's and Women's Cross Country opened its 2025 season at the NJIT Alumni XC Opener at Branch Brook Park in Newark, on Friday evening. The Jaspers competed alongside NJIT, FDU, Ramapo, and Drew University.
HOW IT HAPPENED
· The Jaspers opened the Todd Witzleben-era with Mikaella Martin pacing the women's side by capturing the Women 5K Run with a time of 18:32.9, and an average mile time of 5:58.2.
· Junior Julia Hendricks logged a time of 19:18.5 with an average mile time of 6:12.9 and crossed in fourth place.
· Freshman Paula Pallares scored a fifth-place finish by registering a time of 19:25.8, and just .3 seconds ahead of FDU's Temi Adebayo with an average mile time of 6:15.2.
· Junior Bailee Christofis notched a time of 19:39.1 and netted an eighth-place finish by recording an average mile time of 6:19.5.
· Senior Bella Cannizzo rounded out the top nine with a time of 20:09.1, with a 6:29.1 average mile time.
· On the Men's side, sophomore Rasmus Jaeger paced the Jaspers with a sixth-place finish for a time of 27:09.2, and average mile time of 5:27.7.
· Senior Jack Flanagan notched a 12th place finish in the 8k with a time of 27:20.0, and average mile time of 5:29.9.
QUOTES FROM THE JASPERS
Head Coach Todd Witzleben: "This was an incredible way to begin my tenure at Manhattan. Both the men's and women's teams executed the race plan perfectly. We controlled the effort early and closed the second half of each race to move towards the front. Mikaela winning the race was a great touch, but she did a wonderful job of pulling her teammates along and helping us to win as a team. It's motivating to see the hard work starting to pay off. We'll continue to progress throughout the season."
UP NEXT
The Green and White are back in action on Saturday, September 13, when the Jaspers host the Jasper Fall XC Invite from Twin Ponds on the Farm in Montgomery.
Follow Manhattan Men's and Women's Cross Country on X (@Jaspers_Track) and Instagram (@JaspersXCTF).
