Runners begin the men's 8K open race at the 43rd annual Paul Short Run, which was hosted by Lehigh at Goodman campus on Saturday, Oct. 1, 2016. Jeffrey Kershenbaum finished first among Lehigh athletes in the race with a time of 25:03. (Sarah Epstein/B&W Staff)

Lehigh cross country teams finish in middle of pack at Paul Short Run

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Lehigh freshman Rafael Hernandez competes in the Paul Short Run men's 8K open race at Goodman Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 1, 2016. Hernandez finished the event with a time of 25:53. (Sarah Epstein/B&W Staff)

Lehigh freshman Rafael Hernandez competes in the Paul Short Run men’s 8K open race at Goodman Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 1, 2016. Hernandez finished the event with a time of 25:53. (Sarah Epstein/B&W Staff)

Editor’s note: A previous version of this article mistakenly used an incorrect first name for the namesake of the meet. The run is named in honor of Paul E. Short.

The Paul Short Run was held Saturday at the Goodman Campus cross country course. First held in 1969, Paul Short Run had only seven men’s teams with the women’s teams joining the race in 1981. Now, the race has expanded to host 14 events featuring six high school races, six college races and two open races.

The Mountain Hawks finished 22nd out of 39 teams in the College Men’s Gold 8K race. Lehigh’s top three runners were freshman Jeffrey Kershenbaum with a time of 25:03, senior Ryan Cooney with a time of 25:10 and sophomore Sam Layding with a time of 25:15.

On the women’s side, Lehigh completed the race 20th out of 45 teams. Sophomore Maura Henderson anchored the group with a time of 20:40, while freshman Hannah Bonaguidi followed at 21:07. Senior Marissa Karl was the Mountain Hawks’ third best finisher at 21:51.

Iona College, Georgetown University and Adams State University landed in the top three on the men’s side. With the top runners for each respectively being Iona’s Kieran Clements with a time of 23:38, Georgetown’s Scott Carpenter with a time of 23:37 and Adams State’s Sydney Gidabuday with a time of 23:41.

The overall top three schools to win the College Women’s Gold 6K race were Yale University, Georgetown and a tie between UPenn and West Virginia University. Yale’s Emily Waligurski, who recorded a time of 20:15, was the Bulldogs’ top finisher, while Georgetown’s Paige Hofstad led the Hoyas with a time of 20:24.

The run, named in honor of Lehigh’s own Paul E. Short, a four sport varsity athlete in football, baseball, wrestling and lacrosse, is in its 43rd year after beginning in 1969.

Short graduated from Lehigh with a degree in business administration. He worked at Bethlehem Steel Company briefly before returning to Lehigh in 1938 to fulfill a 29-year career. Short worked as an assistant coach for his four varsity sports, as well as the business manager and assistant director of athletics.

During Short’s stint as an administrator at Lehigh, he became a fan of Lehigh cross country. After Short’s death and the completion of Lehigh’s new cross country course, coach John Covert decided to dedicate a meet to Lehigh’s long-time cross country fan.

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1 Comment

  1. Sue Tirjan (Short) his daughter on

    The Paul Short run is in honor of Paul E Short not Robert E Short Please correct this error.

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