LOCK HAVEN – On Thursday, East Stroudsburg University women's cross country student-athlete Bri Hennett was named the 2023 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Women's Cross Country Freshman of the Year.
Hennett becomes the first ESU woman in program history to be recognized as the PSAC Women's Cross Country Freshman of the Year and second runner to receive a major award from the conference as Jan Blake earned Athlete of the Year honors in 1996.
The Warrior rookie made an immediate impact from the opening race of the year and was an important part of ESU's success in the postseason. Hennett was the Warriors' No. 1 overall runner in every regular season race she competed in and finished among the top-7 overall at both the 2023 PSAC Championships and NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional.
Hennett, who became ESU's first-ever women's cross country freshman to represent the program at the NCAA Championships after earning an at-large bid, recorded an 88th place finish and was the third highest finisher among all other PSAC runners. Additionally, her time of 21.28.6 was the fastest ever recorded by an ESU runner competing in the 6K at the national championships, eclipsing the previous mark of 21:35.5 set by Vanessa Andes in 2003.
Hennett notched a seventh place finish at the regional championships and was the first Warrior to earn All-Region honors since Kaylyn West in 2017. Additionally, she recorded the highest finish by a freshman in school history, eclipsing 13th place finishes from Georgianna Messinger (1984) and Tina Vosper (1995) in their respective years.
A two-time PSAC Athlete of the Week, Hennett garnered First Team All-PSAC honors after guiding ESU with a fifth place finish overall at the PSAC Championships. She produced the highest finish by a first-year student in program history as the previous best came from Tina Vosper (7th) at the 1995 PSAC Championships.
Hennett and the Warriors opened the 2023 season by capturing the program's first team title since Oct. 19, 2018, as ESU took first place at the Adelphi Panthers XC Invite.
2023 PSAC Men's & Women's Cross Country Major Awards
Women's
Athlete of the Year: Kylie Anicic, Edinboro
Freshman of the Year: Bri Hennett, East Stroudsburg
Coach of the Year: Bobby Over, Slippery Rock
Men's
Athlete of the Year: Garrett Quinan, Shippensburg
Freshman of the Year: Andrew Diehl, Kutztown
Coach of the Year: Steve Spence, Shippensburg
