The Bard College men's cross-country team had four of its top five scoring runners among the Top 30 finishers on Friday at the New Paltz Invitational and finished 3rd out of 13 schools with 99 points. 

Sophomore Clemente Esponilla paced the Raptors with a sixth-place finish and a time of 29:19.4. First-years Elijah Flynn, Joshua Schwartz and Royal Hooper each ran their first competitive 8K: Flynn finished second for the Raptors and 17th overall with 30:58.6, Schwartz finished 32nd with a time of 33:54.2 and Hooper finished 50th with a time fo 37:51.4. 

Sophomore Bo Hopwood smashed his personal best by three minutes and finished 21st with a time of 31:50.8. Senior Jack Keelan finished 23rd and was only 10 seconds behind his personal best at 31:57.6.

"From the weather to the course to the competition to the team energy, today was cross country at its best," said head coach Reed Williams. "Sometimes the best XC races are about placement more than time, and we had a great collection of wonderfully executed race strategies and learning experiences today. I am looking forward to riding this wave of momentum into our home invitational next Saturday!" 

Bard returns to action next week when they host the Fred Pavlich Invitational on Saturday. 

Bard (3rd, 99 points)
6. Clemente Esponilla 29:19.4
17. Elijah Flynn 30:58.6
21. Bo Hopwood 31:50.8 
23. Jack Keelan 31:57.6
32. Joshua Schwartz 33:54.2
50. Royal Hooper 37:51.4