Rowan men’s cross country head coach Dustin Dimit can tell that one of his runners put in a lot of work over the summer. He wasn’t training him or watching him put in the hours, but he can certainly tell that they’re there. That runner is Colin Patterson, who only needed 25 minutes, 17.40 seconds to prove himself to Dimit at the Salisbury Classic on Aug. 30.

“My expectation coming into Salisbury was just to put in some good work and kind of execute a specific race plan we were given for that day,” Patterson said. “And the atmosphere there was nice.”

That’s because 25:14.70 was the time Patterson ran in the season-opening cross country meet in Salisbury, winning the race and marking his new personal best. The performance led to his selection as New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Men’s Cross Country Runner of the Week on Sept. 2. His team finished third overall.

“Obviously, we’re really happy with Colin winning and going out there and running his best time ever, first meet,” Dimit said. “Like, that shows you put in the work.”

Aside from Patterson, Rowan’s top five included Matthew Conway finishing in ninth, Anthony Faust at 14, and Giovanni LaPietra at 15. 

He’s certainly spot on about having a young group this season. Giovanni LaPietra, the fifth finisher for Rowan, is just a freshman. The Profs’ current top runner, Patterson, is still just a junior, as well as Aidan Brad. There are seven freshmen and one sophomore on this year’s roster.

“We have a really young team,” said Head Coach Dustin Dimit. “The first step in building to what we hope is another NJAC title and contending for the regional title that we came up short on last year.”

The Profs had a total of six freshman runners in Salisbury, with the top first-year placer being LaPietra, who snuck his way into that top five. Elijah Whitaker, a Glassboro High School alumni, followed with a time of 26:27.70, a 23rd-place finish. Dan Cota and Ethan Worst finished 26th and 27th, respectively. Garrett Walters finished at 31 with a 27:35.50 time, followed by Giovanni Torres in 33rd with a 27:53.20.

Now, the focus will turn towards the Osprey Open, on Sept. 20 at Stockton, the second of their four regular-season meets.

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