Ben Deihl | sports editor

For the first time in five years, Duquesne men’s cross country has received a preseason ranking from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, landing them at no. 12 in the polls. This ranking is the highest the Dukes have received since 2020, where they were ranked no. 15 in the Week 5 poll.

The Dukes are on track to compete in a tough A-10 conference, which also has no. 11 Bucknell and no. 15 George Washington competing for the title. The region is full of cross country talent, headlined with regional no. 1 Princeton, who is also no. 19 in the nation.

Georgetown is right behind at the second spot in regionals and number 28 nationally. Villanova is just outside of the national coach’s top 30 but is third in regional rankings. While Duquesne has a solid team, they’re in one of the most competitive geographical locations in the country.

Head coach Jeff Gibson has a very interesting team this year, with 10 of 17 runners being underclassmen. Gibson has had to play with this unique scenario this year after fielding a fairly inexperienced team. He still has confidence in his team and believes that if he lets his team find their groove, all will work out in the end.

“There’s such a big transition from high school to competing at the collegiate level. Not even the competition aspect, just going to college and having new roommates,” he said.

Even with such a young team, Gibson has seen incredible strides taken in learning how to compete at the collegiate level. Having a team of primarily underclassmen regionally ranked is impressive enough, and some guys have really been turning heads in practice and meets.

“One of the biggest surprises has been Sam Freedman, the sophomore,” Gibson said. “He’s figured it out. He was our third guy on Saturday, and that’s where he’s been during our workouts.”

Having confidence in such a young team can be a challenge, but Gibson is ready for such a test. He understands that inexperience must be paired with confidence and trust.  

Gibson has been ensuring his runners each understand their individual role to their squad while also emphasizing a team mindset. Cross country can feel like an individual sport from the scoring system, but Gibson makes sure his team understands how important they all are to the team’s overall success.

The Dukes have a stacked schedule this year, competing closely with many top-ranked regional teams and fighting for a good spot in the competitive A-10 conference. Duquesne travels to Lehigh University for the 2025 Paul Short Invitational on Oct. 3.

The meet will host all but one of the top 15 teams in Duquesne’s region, with Bucknell not being represented. Duquesne will also have to compete with more nationally ranked teams at the invitational, like no. 24 Harvard.

Two weeks later, Duquesne travels to Charlottesville to compete in the University of Virginia Open, hosted by the nation’s sixth best Virginia Cavaliers.

The Dukes have plenty of opportunities to show up and put the nation on watch, but Gibson is keeping his team humble and focusing on the long-term stability of his young squad.

“One of our goals was to be in the top six in our conference meet,” he said. “But certainly right now we just want to stay healthy and continue to grow.”

Gibson has put a huge emphasis on progression this year with some last-minute shuffling of his team. Two of his best senior runners entered the transfer portal this year, leaving the team without some of their leaders.

Seniors Jack Barnhisel and Nathaniel Woshner have stepped up to lead the team, with other seniors like Ben Colli currently nursing injuries, keeping them out of competition.

“I’m excited to see our younger guys improve, and hopefully our seniors improve too. Watching the young guys start to blend and mesh with the seniors is always fun.”

Duquesne starts to wrap up their season with the A-10 Championships on November 1, where Gibson has already put high expectations for his team. The Dukes have one more match at Saint Francis before heading off to the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships on Nov. 14.

Ben Deihl can be reached at deihlb1@duq.edu