BRONX, N.Y. – Senior Julie Dickhans (Sewickley, Pa.) of the Niagara cross country team posted a career-best fourth-place finish at the 2007 MAAC Championships Friday in Bronx, N.Y.

Dickhans covered the 6K Van Cortlandt course in a time of 22:53.2 to lead the Purple Eagle women to an eighth-place team finish. She improved on her career-best finish at a conference championship by five spots, after placing ninth as a junior.

"She ran a great race," head coach Tom Mulhern said. "We’re still doing high-mileage training, so Julie’s effort is a testament to her mental and physical toughness. We’ll begin to cut back on the mileage and she’ll be ready to race even faster in two weeks at the NCAA Regionals."

Sophomore Chelsea Usack (Horseheads, N.Y.) was NU’s second-highest finisher for the women, taking 54th place in 25:19.1, her fastest 6K performance this season, while sophomore Jill Snopkowski (Torrington, Conn.) finished 65th in a time of 25:49.5.

Niagara’s men, led by freshman Mike Trendell (Oriskany Falls, N.Y.), took seventh as a team. Trendell ran a time of 27:36.8 over the 8K course to finish 39th, while sophomore Corey Brown (Batavia, N.Y.) took 46th place by posting a time of 27:45.3.

"Overall, we didn’t run to our potential today," Mulhern said. "This team is young, so they’ll bounce back. They’re hard-working individuals who just had an off day."

Iona’s men’s and women’s squads each captured team titles. The Gael men’s program has won 17 consecutive MAAC Championships, while the women have won three in a row.

Following an off week, Niagara will travel to Boston, Mass., Nov. 10 for the NCAA Northeast Regional.