The William and Mary men's cross country team heads to the Colonial Athletic Association Championships this weekend, looking to keep alive one of the longest winning streaks in the history of Division I cross country.  The conference meet is being hosted by Towson University this fall, and will go off at 10 a.m. Saturday morning at the Oregon Ridge State Park in Cockeysville, Md.

Scouting the Tribe
W&M has won the last 13 CAA titles, a streak that is tied for seventh-longest in NCAA history and is the fourth-longest active winning streak in the nation.  Last year saw the Tribe hold off a spirited effort from George Mason, but the Patriots are no longer in the league.  Including 15 Southern Conference titles, the Green and Gold have won 35 total championships in cross country, the third-highest total in the country (behind Wisconsin's 46 and Arkansas' 42).

The Tribe will be sending 13 runners, of whom 12 can run.  Leading the way is Rad Gunzenhauser (Pittsburgh, Pa.), who has been named CAA Runner of the Week after all three of his races so far this season.  Gunzenhauser has consistently been the Tribe's top runner this fall, and will be looking to improve on his third-place showing from last year.  Joshua Mercado (Citrus Heights, Calif.) is also a returning all-conference performer, after he took ninth at the conference meet in 2012.  Sophomore Ryan Gousse (Apopka, Fla.) was the 2012 Rookie of the Year after finishing 15th overall, one spot ahead of classmate Nathan Thomas (Brentwood, Tenn.) who is scheduled to make his season debut on Saturday.  Junior Ian MacFawn (LaVale, Md.) was also part of last year's championship squad, and will be looking to improve on his 32nd-place finish.

Another eight men will be making their CAA Cross Country debuts on Saturday.  Redshirt-freshman David Barney (Lynchburg, Va.) was the top finisher at the Tribe Invitational this fall, while classmate Jacob Sears (Cary, N.C.) is coming off a second-place finish at the CNU Invitational.  Sophomore Nathaniel Hermsmeier (Charlottesville, Va.) has been one of the most consistent members of the varsity seven, and David Pennesi (Fredericksburg, Va.) was third on the team at CNU in his only appearance so far this fall.  Also on the travel squad are four true freshmen, in Tom Feeney (Cranford, N.J.), Faris Sakallah (Chantilly, Va.), Trevor Sleight (Asheville, N.C.), and Nick Tyrey (Raleigh, N.C.).

Scouting the Opponents
This year will be a new look in the CAA, with one team gone (George Mason) and one new team (College of Charleston).  Graduation also hit the returning teams hard, with just 16 runners from last year's meet (of 46) returning this fall.  In addition to the Tribe, and newcomers College of Charleston, competing teams will include Northeastern (third in 2012), UNCW (fourth), and Hofstra (fifth).