Altamont, NY - The Panthers kicked off their new cross country season with a home meet hosted by Indian Ladder Farms. The Panthers had a great day showcasing the new location of their home course. 

The first off the line were the ladies. The ladies were looking to go out and make a statement, which is something they did numerous times last season. In a field full of some local schools as well as conference, and USCAA competition, the ladies preformed well for the first meet this season. The ladies were able to get all three across the finish line within the top-15 of the race. First across the line for the Panthers was Junior, Amalia Nunes (Poughkeepsie, NY) finishing with an 11th place finish. Shortly behind her was Sophomore, Kayleigh Simpson (Utica, NY) finishing 12th overall. Senior, and captain Morgan Scarzafava (Middletown, NY) finished 15th overall to round out things on the women's side. 

The men, with a new identity this year, saw the debuts of three freshmen. Along with the debuts, the men's team was able to finish 3rd as a team. In a field that saw some teams in the YSCC, and USCAA, the men were able to pull together for a strong day. The first Panther to cross the line was Freshmen, Dylan Wang (Glenmont, NY) securing his first top-10 finish of his young Panther career. Second for the Panthers was Freshmen, Harrison Matthews (Peru, NY) making a great debut. Third to cross the line was Junior, Tyler Buffolino (Ridge, NY) who finished just a couple seconds behind Matthews. Fourth for the Panthers was Freshmen, Kevin Andrews (Buffalo, NY) who also had a strong college debut. Fifth for the Panthers was Sophomore, Andy Tran (Vietnam) who had a very strong start his season to round out scoring on the men's side. 

The Panthers saw a lot of great things today, and Head Coach Samson Dikeman after the meet said "Really happy to be back. I thought the team started to gel in preseason, and I think we saw evidence of that today in our team's performance and the way they supported each other. Today was all about getting that competitive mindset back, and I think everyone was happy to be back racing. I'm very impressed with our new freshmen on the men's side: I thought they stepped up. I'm pleased with the way our women performed today, a little bit melancholy as we started Morgan Scarzafava's last season—she's been a great leader on this team and we're excited to see what she will do."

The Panthers will be back next Saturday as they compete at the STEPHEN A. WARDE INVITATIONAL hosted by SUNY Cobleskill.

How to follow the Panthers: For the latest information on ACPHS athletics, visit acphspanthers.com or check out the ACPHS athletics social media platforms on Instagram @ACPHSPanthers or Twitter @ACPHSAthletics.