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Sept. 3, 2009 CORRECTION: West Virginia University women and St. Joseph's University (Philadelphia) women will be competing in the 2009 Lid Lifter Invitational, not the Saint Francis women as was originally stated.
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. - The University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) men's and women's cross country teams commence their seasons on Saturday, Sept. 5 at 10 a.m., hosting the Lid-Lifter Invitational, held on the UMES Cross Country Course.
The Lid Lifter returns to action in 2009 after a cancellation in 2008 due to Tropical Storm Hanna and Hurricane Ike.
The Hawks play host to Delaware State, Hampton, Morgan State, Naval Academy men, Norfolk State, Saint Francis women and Wilmington College.
The Lady Hawks look to defend their Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Championship and return 13 letterwinners from last year's team, including Cynthia Anais (Paris, France) and Tamica Thomas (Saint Catherine, Jamaica).
Anais, a sophomore, participated in all seven events last season and was the team's top finisher in the first event of the 2008 season at the Navy Salty Dog six-kilometer race while also having three top-20 finishes on the season. Her top time of the year was 19:10.01.
Thomas, a senior, was the top UMES finisher at the 2008 MEAC Championships by placing seventh with a time of 18:39.70.
The men's cross country team, a second-place finisher in the 2008 MEAC Championships, return junior Peter Sang (Kapsabet, Kenya), who placed second overall at that meet with a time of 25:40.47.
Sang was named the MEAC Athlete of the Week on October 15, 2008 and won the individual title at the UMES Hawk Challenge in a time of 25:24.77, which was his top time of the year.
On Sept. 12, the teams travel to Hunt Valley, Md., to run in the Towson Invitational.
The Hawks then host the annual Cappy Anderson Invitational on Sept. 19.
They are then on the road for two meets, traveling to Centreville, Va., for the Mason Invitational on Oct. 3 and Newark, Del. on Oct. 17 for the Delaware Invitational.
UMES also plays host to the MEAC Cross Country Championships on Oct. 31 and the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional on Nov. 14 before the NCAA Championships, held in Terre Haute, Ind., on Nov. 24.
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