The Shippensburg University men's cross country team ventures up U.S. Route 15 once again this weekend, returning to Mansfield University. This time, it's for the 2022 NCAA Atlantic Region Championships, and a 10K showdown at Lamb's Creek. The gun is set to go off at 11:30 a.m. Saturday.
 
Live coverage of the race, a course map, parking details and more information related to the championships is available by clicking on the blue CHAMPIONSHIPS CENTRAL button above to the right.
 
There are myriad reasons why Saturday's race will be the most exciting of the season. Among the foremost important is the fact that it will be the longest to date, with the regional championships marking the first time all season that runners cross the finish line having completed 10,000 meters of travel.
 
"Going from 8K to 10K is definitely a challenge," head coach Steve Spence said. "You're out there at least an extra six or seven minutes. The way we approach it is we can get out a little more conservatively because we have an extra 2K to work up at the end. As far as our team goes, with the volume that we've done, especially this year that we've focused more on volume, I think it should help our endurance and make that adjustment not as challenging as it's been in the past."

In addition to tactical adjustments on Saturday will be physical adjustments. The forecast is calling for sunny skies on Saturday in Mansfield, but a high temperature of 31 degrees and winds gusting up to 25 mph.  
 
"It's going to be very cold, and windy, so that's going to slow things down and even make it a longer race," Spence said. "I think it's important to get out a little conservative, and those people that go out too hard are probably going to pay for it at the end."
 
Despite the likelihood of Tioga County chill on the horizon, the Raiders are not about to let the cold prevent them from being at their best on Saturday.
 
"It's definitely a mix of mental and physical," senior Nathan Harding said. "We've been training since June for this one moment, to try to make nationals. The weather is going to be the greatest equalizer and put everyone on the same playing field."
 
To make the national championships, scheduled for December 2 in Seattle, it will take a Top 3 team finish. Shippensburg will not only have to navigate the course against Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) champion Edinboro and other league rivals such as Slippery Rock, Cal and Lock Haven, but also the entirety of the Mountain East Conference (MEC). Three of the top five teams in the region hail from the MEC: No. 1 Charleston, No. 3 Concord and No. 5 Davis & Elkins.
 
"This is just going to be the perfect weekend," Harding said. "The weather's going to be terrible, which is going to make it even better. We're ready for it, and it'll just be which team shows up who are the ones going to Seattle."
 
This year's group of Raider runners is unique in the sense that only three of the projected starters will have competed in a regional championships race prior to Saturday: senior Drew Dailey, junior Aiden Gonder and junior Hayden Hunt. SU's projected alternate for Saturday, senior Kevin Wagner, also has the experience of competing at last year's regional meet.
 
Of the four Raiders ready to make their regional debut this weekend, two are veterans in the midst of career seasons: Joey Cintavey and Harding. Two are true freshmen: Garrett Quinan and Ryan Wolfe.
 
"It's a good mix of the young guys and the veterans," Spence said. "They've meshed so well. They're so supportive of each other."
 
Another captivating note is that Shippensburg has had five different No. 1 runners through its six races this season. Ian Sherlock, the No. 1 runner in the team's first two races in 2022, is unfortunately out this weekend due to injury. However, Dailey, Gonder, Hunt, and most recently, Quinan, have also delivered turns as a lead Raider runner.
 
"We have a lot of depth," Spence said. "I have nine guys who have been training for regionals, and it's hard to choose and decide who to put in the lineup. I think all nine have the potential to be all-region type runners."
 
To gain that coveted United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Atlantic Region classification, a runner must be among the Top 25 individual finishers this weekend. Of the Raiders set to toe the line, only Hunt (10th place last season) has achieved that honor.
 
That was enough for Hunt to qualify as an individual for the national championships in 2021, but the goal in 2022 is to have the entire Raider outfit prepare for flights for Seattle.
 
"We're going to get out there and get after it," Spence said. "These guys have really worked hard, and I'd love to see them have a really great conclusion to the season."
 
Projected Lineup:
Junior Joey Cintavey (Newark, Del./The Tatnall School)
Senior Drew Dailey (Phoenix, Md./Dulaney)
Junior Aiden Gonder (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Red Land)
Senior Nathan Harding (Mohnton, Pa./Governor Mifflin)
Junior Hayden Hunt (Shippensburg, Pa./Shippensburg Area)
Freshman Garrett Quinan (Stewartstown, Pa./Kennard-Dale)
Freshman Ryan Wolfe (Lebanon, Pa./Cedar Crest)
Alternate: Senior Kevin Wagner (Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown West)
 
Shippensburg at the NCAA Atlantic Region Championships:
(last five championship meets)
2021: 4th, 116 points (9-10-32-33-35)
2020: No championships
2019: 7th, 209 points (35-38-44-45-47)
2018: 2nd, 76 points (9-13-16-18-28)
2017: 1st, 35 points (1-3-5-10-16)
2016: 1st, 41 points (2-3-8-11-17)