Georgetown’s cross country program was on the road this weekend, as the Hoyas competed in the 2013 Big East championship in Somers, Wis. The No. 3 women’s team placed second overall, and the men finished fourth. The results yielded mixed feelings among the coaching staff.

On the women’s side, Head Coach Michael Smith was satisfied with his team’s performance.

“We had a good day,” Smith said. “We were going to evaluate our success not necessarily on our team’s score but on how well we executed our race plan and how well this race plays into what we’re trying to do for the national championship. So in that regard, I think we did a good job.”

In the 6,000-meter race, graduate student and All-American Rachel Schneider was the top finisher for the Hoyas, coming in fifth overall with a time of 20:23. Sophomore Samantha Nadel matched Schneider’s time, coming in sixth. The team proved to be an efficient unit, as there was less than a minute’s difference between the times of the top and final finishers. Smith felt that each runner made important contributions to the team’s performance.

“[Some of our runners] didn’t score for us, but they were right up there,” Smith said. “Even the runners who aren’t in our top five can still displace runners from other teams. We had athletes who were really running a strong team race, and any time that’s the case, we’re going to do pretty well.”

The women’s team ended up scoring 47 points, falling only to the No. 4 Providence Friars, who finished with 28 points. Providence had four of the top seven finishers in the race, with senior Emily Sisson placing first in 19:49, beating the meet record of 20:26 handily.

Although the Hoyas fell to a tough competitor, they still will be a formidable opponent in the upcoming Mid-Atlantic Regional meet on Nov. 15.

“[Providence] is maybe the best team in the country right now,” Smith said. “[But] I think we’ve got one of the best teams in the country. … I think a lot of people know that this is a very strong team.”

On the men’s side, men’s Head Coach Brandon Bonsey was not as pleased with his team’s results.

“To be honest, it was a pretty disappointing result, and also the way that we got the result was disappointing,” Bonsey said. “We were bringing eight guys, and I would say two of them even tried to follow the race plan. … There was kind of a lack of commitment.”

Graduate student Andrew Springer and senior Brian King, the two runners who followed the race plan, were also the two top finishers for the Hoyas, with Springer placing eighth overall in 24:22 and King taking 13th place in 24:37. Georgetown’s final score of 76 points put them in fourth place overall. The Hoyas finished behind No. 26 Villanova (36 points), No. 19 Providence (49) and Butler (61).

“There’s no reason in the world that they should have beat us by as much as they did,” Bonsey said of Georgetown’s conference competitors. “We beat Villanova and Providence consistently last year, and we beat them in track last year as well. Both of them have good runners, but it’s not like they’re any better than us.”

Bonsey knows that with the Mid-Atlantic Regional approaching quickly, he needs to see better results from his team.

“We have a very talented group that has been training really well … but if we race again like we’ve been racing, there’s no way we’ll make the NCAA [championship],” Bonsey said. “The guys need to just be tough in the middle portion of the race. … If you don’t find a rhythm, it’s not easy … and they need to realize that.”

Smith is also looking forward to the upcoming competition for the women’s team, and he confidently has his sights set on the NCAA championship.

“I think that we’re going to be able to move through our region and advance,” Smith said. “Our focus is on the national meet.”