The New York University men's cross country team, the defending NCAA Division III National Champions, opened its 2008 season with a second-place finish at the Marist College Invitational on Friday, September 5, in Poughkeepsie, NY.

On a hot, humid and windy 85-degree day at Bowdoin Park, a pair of Violet upperclassmen took second and third place, respectively, in the race against a pair of NCAA Division I programs.

Host Marist won the invitational with 23 points, followed by NYU (38) and St. Peter's College (85).

Junior Calvin Lee was NYU's first runner to hit the tape, finishing with a time of 16:31. Following right behind him was senior All-American Jesse Schneider, who clocked a time of 16:33.

Junior Zach Maher also finished among the top 10, taking 10th place in a time of 16:53. 
 
Freshman Jack Fitzhenry (12th place, 16:57) and senior Mark Hess (17th, 17:10) rounded out the team's top five.

"The guys have trained very hard the last two weeks," said NYU head coach Nick McDonough. "It was a good first effort running on tired legs. We look forward to the rest of the season."