Amato Wins Individual Crown as Towson Cross Country Takes Second at Season Opener
Towson women’s cross country opened the 2026 season with an encouraging performance Friday afternoon at the Mount St. Mary’s 5K Duals in Emmitsburg, Maryland, finishing second overall behind Howard. Sophomore Anna Amato delivered the biggest performance of the day for the Tigers, capturing the first individual victory of her collegiate career. Amato completed the five-kilometer course in 18 minutes, 54.50 seconds to lead the field and give Towson an immediate highlight to begin the fall season.
The victory also demonstrated significant progress from Amato’s freshman season. She ran 20:28.20 on the same Mount St. Mary’s course during her Towson debut last season, meaning she improved by roughly a minute and a half in one year. Towson listed Amato’s 2026 performance as a new personal best, and her ability to remain patient before making her move was singled out by first-year distance assistant coach Zach Lefever.
Amato was not Towson’s only runner near the front of the field. Junior Rebekka Hillier finished fourth overall in 19:18.60, continuing her role as one of the Tigers’ most dependable scorers after leading Towson during each regular-season meet a year ago. Senior Baara Stewart gave Towson another strong performance by finishing 12th in 20:04.50, putting three Tigers among the first 12 runners to cross the finish line.
Towson also received immediate contributions from its freshman class. Kate Murphy finished 15th with a time of 20:36.80, while fellow freshman Cameryn Loper followed directly behind her in 16th at 20:40.30 to complete the Tigers’ scoring five. The five Towson scorers averaged 19:55 and were separated by only 1 minute, 46 seconds, an encouraging indication of the lineup depth available to the Tigers early in the season.
Howard ultimately captured the team championship behind four top-10 finishers despite Amato taking the individual crown. Mira Martin finished second in 19:05.53 and Ester Kirk placed third in 19:13.28, giving the Bison two runners immediately behind Amato. Howard also received fifth place from Chloe Poindexter and seventh from Alexis Jones, allowing the Bison’s depth near the front of the race to overcome Towson’s individual victory.
The second-place finish represents a noticeable step forward from Towson’s performance at the same season-opening event in 2025. Last year, the Tigers placed fourth among eight teams with 104 points, with Hillier leading Towson by finishing fifth overall in 18:50.29. Towson eventually went on to win the Delaware Invitational before placing ninth at the CAA Championship, which was the program’s best conference championship performance in four years.
There are also several new pieces around the program this season. Lefever made his competitive debut as Towson’s distance assistant after joining Consandria Walker-Hall’s staff during the summer following two seasons as an assistant at La Salle. Towson entered the year with six newcomers — Olivia Donmoyer, Samia Ghazaz, Angeleah Lepre, Loper, Murphy and Sifen Tusse — giving the Tigers a combination of returning experience and young runners capable of developing throughout the fall.
Walker-Hall praised the improvement displayed by the Tigers compared with the beginning of last season, while Lefever emphasized how well Towson’s runners worked together throughout the race. That approach showed in the final results, as Towson placed five runners within the top 16 while keeping its scoring group relatively compact. Amato provided the headline performance, but the supporting results from Hillier, Stewart, Murphy and Loper made the season opener an encouraging team effort rather than simply one standout individual race.
Towson will now have two weeks to prepare for its next competition. The Tigers are scheduled to travel to Haverford, Pennsylvania, for the Main Line Invitational at Haverford College on Friday, Sept. 18. With an individual championship, a second-place team finish and several strong performances already on the board, Towson will head into its second meet with legitimate momentum.
MSB Take
This was about as strong of an opening statement as Towson could have wanted. Amato cutting more than 90 seconds from the time she ran on this course last season is a major development, and winning the entire race as a sophomore suggests she could become one of Towson’s most important runners this fall. Having Hillier finish fourth gives the Tigers two runners capable of competing near the front of a field, which could become extremely valuable once Towson reaches larger invitational and championship meets.
The freshmen are another reason to like what Towson showed in Emmitsburg. Murphy and Loper immediately counted among the Tigers’ scoring five, and Towson still has plenty of season remaining for its younger runners to gain experience and improve. Howard had enough front-end depth to win this meet, but Towson finishing second while producing the individual champion is an excellent foundation for the rest of the 2026 season.
