BOSTON, Mass. — Men's cross country will send its top runners to Boston on Friday to compete in NCAA Northeast Regionals at Franklin Park, a course this year's squad saw success on earlier in the season. The Big Red finished fourth at the Battle in Beantown on Sep. 25 at the same site, led by a fifth place individual finish by senior Ben Rainero.
 
After finishing fourth at Ivy League Heptagonals on Oct. 30, Cornell received votes in the most recent national poll and is ranked No. 6 in the region. The Northeast Regional race, which includes all Division I teams from New York state and north to Maine, will feature four nationally ranked teams: No. 2 Syracuse, No. 9 Iona, No. 16 Columbia and No. 29 Providence. Yale, which finished third at Heps, is the only nationally unranked squad that sits above Cornell in the regional rankings.
 
"We have been preparing for this meet all summer and fall, and we are excited about the opportunity to race with some of the nation's best," said coach Zeb Lang.
 
Last season, the Big Red finished fifth at the Northeast Regional behind All-Regional performances from Dominic DeLuca, Brian Eimstad and now-graduated David Melly. DeLuca and Eimstad have once again posted strong seasons for Cornell, joined by Rainero, who has been the Big Red's top finisher in every race he has competed in.
 
"We were a good team last year, but I think we are stronger and deeper going into Regionals this year," said Lang. "We are closer to the mix of the top teams."
 
The Big Red will be looking for a strong finish to qualify for NCAA National Championships in Louisville, Ky., on Nov. 21.  
 
"We will be going into this meet aiming for a top-three team finish," said Lang. "Our goals are very team-oriented and we want to finish the job right."