NEW YORK – Connecticut's Brooke Strauss and DePaul's Mohamed Abdullahi have earned BIG EAST Cross Country weekly honors. Strauss made her collegiate debut for the Huskies, placing second at the Ted Owen Invitational and helping lead UConn to the team title. Abdullahi's 14th place finish at the National Catholic Championship paced DePaul to a fourth place finish as a team.
BIG EAST Female Athlete of the Week
Brooke Strauss, Connecticut, Fr.
Strauss shined in her first collegiate cross country race, covering the 5K course at the Ted Owen Invitational in a time of 17:12.40 - good for second place. She led the Huskies to the team title, as six UConn runners finished among the top eight in the race.
BIG EAST Male Athlete of the Week
Mohamed Abdullahi, DePaul, So.
Abdullahi set a new personal-best time of 24:46.4 for eight kilometers at the National Catholic Championship held in South Bend, Ind. He finished 14th overall, leading the Blue Demons to a fourth place finish as a team.
Women's Notes – Hannah Moore made her season debut for Butler, finishing second at the Rumble in the Fort in a time of 21:19.3 (6K)...the Bulldogs finished second in the team standings...Marquette's Emma Coon's 10th place finish (22:46.30, 6K) at the Badger Classic...eight Golden Eagles' runners finished in the top 20 overall...Caroline Cummings led Georgetown to the team title in the open 5K at the Cantello Invitational in Annapolis...the Hoyas placed all five scorers between fourth and eighth place in the win...UConn won its second meet of the season - the Ted Owen Invitational - with 20 points...nine Huskies finished among the top 15, each under the 18-minute mark...Tessa Roe clocked a personal-best 17:38.0 for 5K - good for 14th place at the National Catholic Championship...the Blue Demons finished third as a team...Taylor Rorick's fourth place finish led Creighton at the Woody Greeno/Jay Dirksen Invite...It marked the third top 10 finish for Rorick (17:53.05, 5K) as the Blue Jays finished fourth overall.
Men's Notes – For the second race in a row, Aakash Arumugam was the top finisher for Seton Hall...he was 24th overall in a time of 26:24.10 as the Pirates placed fourth as a team at the Ted Owen Invitational...Nick Farrell was the top finisher for Marquette at the Badger Classic, covering the 8K course in a time of 26:09.9...four Golden Eagles finished in the top 20 overall for MU...DePaul placed four runners in the top 32 overall, finishing fourth at the National Catholic Championship...Creighton's Owen Marett was 31st overall at the Woody Greeno/Jay Dirksen Invite, clocking 25:23.87 for 8K...as a team, the Bluejays placed eighth in a field of 23 teams.
In The Polls – Two BIG EAST men's teams and two women's squads are among the top 30 on the 2025 national poll (week one), released on Sept. 16. For the men, Butler is No. 15 and Georgetown is No. 30, while Villanova is receiving votes. On the women's side, Providence is ranked sixth, with Georgetown checking in at 17th.
Several BIG EAST teams are featured among the regional rankings. For the women, Providence tops the Northeast, followed by Connecticut in fifth. Georgetown is third and Villanova sixth in the Mid-Atlantic, while Butler is 12th in the Great Lakes. On the men's rankings, Georgetown and Villanova are second and third, respectively in the Mid-Atlantic, while Butler sits in third in the Great Lakes.