LANCASTER, Pa. – The Franklin & Marshall men's cross country team opened its 2022 season on its home course and faced a tough regionally-ranked opponent right out of the gate in Lebanon Valley. Franklin & Marshall was edged by a 23-34 score against the visiting Dutchmen.

The Diplomats came away with three of the top seven individual finishers on Baker Campus as seniors Mike Maglione (16:23) and Alex Fillman (16:28) took third and fifth, respectively, with only recent graduate Ryan Braun '22 coming in between them. Sophomore Noah Hall was the team's third finisher, placing seventh overall with a time of 16:31.

Connor Ashnault and Owen McCann just missed top 10 finishes in the field of 35 runners, but both broke the 17-minute mark en route to 11th and 12th place showings. The Diplomats had a strong pack to decide the team's sixth and seventh finishers as Alex Miller (17:05), Alfonso Knoll (17:22), Chris Mayo (17:25), and Jack Emrey (17:26) all finished in the 14th through 18th positions in the field.

A total of 12 Diplomats competed during the season-opening event, with Dan Gaiewski (18:26), Nick Trapani (19:02), and Holden Brown (20:14) also racing the 5,000 meter course to start the year.

Men's cross country will continue to challenge itself throughout the season as the Diplomats return to action in just six days for the annual Little Three Meet. Hosted by Gettysburg this year, the Little Three Meet will take place on Friday, September 9 and should provide another chance for the Diplomats to test themselves against the Bullets and Dickinson to see how they can compete early within the Centennial Conference.