JOHNSTOWN, PA -- The men's and women's cross country teams capped their 2016 season at the AMCC Championships in Johnstown, PA. The men placed fifth and the women eighth.

It was a homecoming for men's cross country coach Jeff Dailey and freshman runner Patrick Dailey who grew up in the Johnstown area. Both helped the Redhawks to their best conference finish in fourteen years.

The fight for fifth came down to the Redhawks and Hilbert. Hilbert finished two runners in sixteenth and and nineteenth place but senior Brandon Hartz led La Roche with a twenty-fourth place finish and helped pace Hemang Sharma and Patrick Dailey to finish in the next two spots. 

The Redhawks depth allowed them to leap frog Hilbert when Johnny Nicholson and Joe Kelsch crossed the finish line in thirty-fourth and thirty-fifth places. Bryan Gatto and Chris Ebbert made sure the Redhawks would take any tie-breaker scenarios finishing thirty-seventh and forty-fifth.

The women's cross country team remained in the hunt throughout the race but ultimately dropped into eighth place. Despite the finish, every returning Redhawk had their best placing finish at an AMCC race.

Andre Luciano finished in twenty-fourth to lead La Roche for the seventh time this season. Devin Kelly concluded her strong freshman campaign with a thirty-first place finish while Jodie Sauer was not far behind in thirty-sixth. RaeAnna Palmer and Amanda DeIuliis capped off their great careers in forty-first and forty-fourth and Brittany Craig and Morgan Churilla crossed the line in forty-ninth and fiftieth.