Five members of the Hobart College cross country team were honored by the Statesmen Athletic Association and the Hobart Athletics Department at the annual Block H Awards Dinner on May 3. Senior Ben Flanagan took home the team's top honor, receiving the Charles P. McCoy '68 Award as the team's most outstanding runner. This is the fourth year in a row he has won the award.

The Coach Ron Fleury Cross Country Award was presented for the first time at this year's dinner. Senior Matt DiBetta was the first runner to be honored with the award, for his outstanding dedication to his academic work, his teammates, and to the HWS community.

Additionally, sophomore Steve Manker was presented with the John L. Brown '32 Award as the most improved runner, while senior Tom Harty was honored with the Dr. Augustus H. “Gus” Hillman '26 Memorial Award for outstanding sportsmanship, leadership, and determination. The Rookie Award for Cross Country went to first-year Briton Claridge.

A co-recipient of the Francis L. “Babe” Kraus '24 Memorial Award presented to Hobart's top senior athlete, Flanagan has been the top Statesmen runner for the past four years, and was the first Statesman to cross the finish line in all 42 races he completed. Flanagan earned a spot in the national championship meet this fall after finishing 20th out of 264 runners in the NCAA Atlantic Regional Championship meet. In the national meet, he finished 132nd in the highly competitive 276-runner field, posting an 8-kilometer time of 26 minutes, 57.3 seconds. Flanagan is just the fourth Statesman to compete in the NCAA National Championship meet.

Over his career, Flanagan won six races, including three this season, and recorded six second-place finishes. He finished in the top-10 21 times in his career, exactly half of the races he ran in. Flanagan improved his times every year, and recorded a personal-best 8k time of 25:29 in the Cross Country Only Conference (CCOC) Championship this season. He was named the Liberty League Performer of the Week five times as a senior, and 12 times in his career.

A three-year member of the team and co-captain this fall, DiBetta worked hard to improve his technique and pace every season. He recorded a personal-best 8k time of 29 minutes, 59.04 seconds this fall at the CCOC Championships. DiBetta also earned a ninth-place finish at the Hobart Invitational and an 11th-place at the HWS Invitational in his final season. A Liberty League All-Academic Team honoree, DiBetta competed in 27 meets over his career.

Harty was one of Hobart's top-three runners all four years, and steadily improved over his career. He recorded a personal-best 8k time this fall, finishing the CCOC Championship in 28:14.77 (20th place). Harty placed fourth in the HWS Invitational, sixth at SUNYIT, and ninth in the Hobart Invitational this year. He also finished 102nd in the 296-runner field at the ECAC Championships with a time of 28:15. Over his career, Harty posted seven top-15 finishes.

Manker improved his personal-best 8k time more than a minute from 2008 to 2009. He ran his fastest race of 2008 in the Saratoga Invitational with a time of 30:41. Manker closed out his sophomore season on a high note, recording a new personal-best of 29:26 at the NCAA Regional Championships, his final meet of the season. He also placed 10th in the HWS Invitational and 21st in the Hobart Invitational this fall. Manker earned a spot on the Liberty League All-Academic Team as well.

Claridge made an immediate impact on the team this year. He was the third Statesmen to cross the finish line in the very first meet he ran in, placing 11th in the 6k SUNYIT Invitational. In the next five races, Claridge was the second Hobart harrier to finish. He came in 30th at the 5k Brockport Invitational, seventh in the Hobart Invitational, and posted a season-best 8k time of 28:09.26 for 18th place in the CCOC Championships.

As a team, the Statesmen won the SUNYIT Invitational and the Hobart Invitational this fall. They also placed third in the CCOC Championships and eighth at the Saratoga Invitational.