Rutgers senior Nick Pschunder of Eastern and Lehigh freshman Connor Melko of Bishop Eustace both finished in the top 10 Friday in the Lehigh Invitational in Bethlehem.
Pschunder ran 19:13 over the 6,000-meter course at Lehigh’s Saucon Valley campus and finished ninth, and Melko – making his collegiate XC debut – finished one second back in 10th place in 19:14.
Pochender was Rutgers’ first finisher. Melko was Lehigh’s seventh man, helping the Mountain Hawks win the team title with 18 points. Rutgers was second with 65 points.
In the women’s race, Shawnee graduate Kara Bonner, a Lehigh junior, helped the Mountain Hawks win the team title by one point over La Salle, 57-58. Bonner was Lehigh’s sixth runner, taking 20th overall in 23:08.45, but by finishing ahead of La Salle’s fifth runner, she helped provide the margin of victory.
