Martin Fagan led the way for the Irish at the American collegiate cross-country championships in Terre Haute, Indiana on Monday with several strong Irish performances to back him up. 
The Mullingar Harrier, wearing the famed black and white of Providence College Friars, finished 5th in an incredibly strong field to cap off yet another stellar cross-country season States-side. He now looks forward to the European Cross-country championships in 3 weeks time where he hopes to make a big impact. There were plenty of other highlights from an Irish perspective. Andrew Ledwith of Fr. Murphy's AC showed he has put his injury problems behind him with a 57th place finish. Andrew make a big impact on arrival at Iona and has battled hard to overcome injury over the last 2 seasons. Richard Yeates of Raheny Shamrocks, also representing Providence, continues his steady progress under the tutelage of Ray Treacy with a commendable 107th place finish. Probably of more significance than the individual perforamances was the strong Irish coaching performances with three Irish led teams in the top 9. Dubliner Mick Byrne led his Iona Gaels to an incredible 3rd place performance, beating their pre-race seeding, and has earned a reputation as a major over-achiever in NCAA circles. John McDonnell, a native of Crossmolina, Co. Mayo, led his Arkansas Razorbacks to joint 5th, while Waterfords Ray Treacy led his Providence Friars to a 9th place finish. Providence started the season ranked outside the top 20 teams, and went into the race ranked 12th. In the women's race Breffni Twohig of DSD and Providence proved she has adjusted well in her first semester in the US with a 93rd place finish. Michelle Gallagher, also of DSD and representing Iona, finished 183rd while teammate Tracey Williams, Tallaght AC, finished in 192nd. Again, Ray Treacy's Lady Friars made a mockery of their pre-race ranking of 21st with a huge performance in 7th place, while at Iona, Mick Byrne has succeeded in building a top class women's program from scratch in just a few short years. Our congratulations go out to all the Irish involved.
The Mullingar Harrier, wearing the famed black and white of Providence College Friars, finished 5th in an incredibly strong field to cap off yet another stellar cross-country season States-side. He now looks forward to the European Cross-country championships in 3 weeks time where he hopes to make a big impact. There were plenty of other highlights from an Irish perspective. Andrew Ledwith of Fr. Murphy's AC showed he has put his injury problems behind him with a 57th place finish. Andrew make a big impact on arrival at Iona and has battled hard to overcome injury over the last 2 seasons. Richard Yeates of Raheny Shamrocks, also representing Providence, continues his steady progress under the tutelage of Ray Treacy with a commendable 107th place finish. Probably of more significance than the individual perforamances was the strong Irish coaching performances with three Irish led teams in the top 9. Dubliner Mick Byrne led his Iona Gaels to an incredible 3rd place performance, beating their pre-race seeding, and has earned a reputation as a major over-achiever in NCAA circles. John McDonnell, a native of Crossmolina, Co. Mayo, led his Arkansas Razorbacks to joint 5th, while Waterfords Ray Treacy led his Providence Friars to a 9th place finish. Providence started the season ranked outside the top 20 teams, and went into the race ranked 12th. In the women's race Breffni Twohig of DSD and Providence proved she has adjusted well in her first semester in the US with a 93rd place finish. Michelle Gallagher, also of DSD and representing Iona, finished 183rd while teammate Tracey Williams, Tallaght AC, finished in 192nd. Again, Ray Treacy's Lady Friars made a mockery of their pre-race ranking of 21st with a huge performance in 7th place, while at Iona, Mick Byrne has succeeded in building a top class women's program from scratch in just a few short years. Our congratulations go out to all the Irish involved. 
