LANCASTER, Pa. – The Franklin & Marshall men's cross country team opened its season at the team's home invitational on Friday evening. The Diplomats finished second among the three collegiate teams with 48 points. Elizabethtown took home the team title with 26 points, while Lancaster Bible scored 94 points.

Zach Houff led five Diplomats to the finish line as he finished with a time of 10:12.8. He was less than 15 seconds off the pace set by the top two finishers from the Blue Jays. Right behind him was Tommy Tapino as F&M had half of the top four finishers with Tapino crossing the finish in a time of 10:20.8.

Aidan Cotter (11:00.9), George Williams (11:05.2), and Addison Neuen (11:15.4) each finished among the top 15 runners. F&M also had five alumni return to campus to compete in the open race. Mike Maglione (10:25.6) led that group, with Holden Brown (10:48.1), Alex Miller (11:49.1), Owen McCann (11:52.9), and Dan Gaiewski (15:33.6) also returning to their alma mater.

Franklin & Marshall will now have a week to recover as the team heads to Gettysburg next Friday for the Little Three Meet. Dickinson will also take part in the annual rivalry race which is set for a 5:15 p.m. start on the battlefield.