St. Lawrence heads into the 2026 season with a new group of runners stepping into the team's leadership positions, and they'll be put to the test for the first time as they head to Plattsburgh, N.Y. for the Cardinal Classic on Saturday, September 5.

This comes as they look to replace the most decorated runner in recent program history after Nick Lyndaker closed out his career with a second straight Liberty League individual title and a fourth consecutive trip to the NCAA Championship.

Head coach John Newman credited the group's selflessness and dedication for a season that included strong team finishes at Liberty Leagues and regionals, calling Russell's first NCAA berth alongside Lyndaker an incredible finish to the fall. He also acknowledged the challenge ahead, saying the program has big shoes to fill following the graduation of an impactful senior class that included Lyndaker.

"We are eager to get the season started this weekend at Plattsburgh," said Newman. "A large portion of the team consists of new faces with a strong first year class and they have already added a lot of new energy to the program through the first few weeks of training.  We expect to see almost a whole new scoring group this year with the graduation of five of our top seven from the championship season in 2025. We also recently named captains, Henry Hagen, Cyrus Goetze and Eliot O'Mahoney and they will be exemplary leaders and mentors along with our other upper-class team members. This will likely be a team that takes most of the season to develop which will make for a fun and exciting 2026 campaign."

Goetze, Hagen, and O'Mahoney lead the roster alongside their fellow upperclassmen Cole Jacobsen, Riley Cushman, and Galen Halasz. The roster is rounded out by a large group of underclass as the roster undergoes a reset for the 2026 season.

Luke Calvin, Aidan Fay, Mason Glew, Carter Johnston, Brody Mindel, Enda Stubler, and Zeb Whitlock highlight the roster as sophomores, while Newman ushers in a large class of newcomers. Owen Card, Nico Conathan-Leach, Ben Falk, Tylan Haag, Oliver Laxer, Pierce McCormack, Luke Pelton, Gus Peterson, and Oren Winters make up the first-year class.

Following the Saints' season-opening trip to the Lake City, the Saints host the Hoffmann Invitational on Sept. 19 before traveling to the RPI Fairgrounds Showdown on Sept. 26 and the Paul Short Run at Lehigh on Oct. 3.

They close out the regular season at Connecticut College on Oct. 17 ahead of the Liberty League Championships, hosted by Bard on Oct. 31. Postseason competition continues with the NCAA Mideast Regional at Wickham Park in Manchester, Conn., on Nov. 14, with the NCAA Championships following, hosted by Carleton College.

Lyndaker was named Liberty League runner of the year for the second consecutive season in 2025. He successfully defended his conference title on the Ronald C. Hoffmann Cross Country Course, winning in 25:16.6, four seconds ahead of the runner-up. Two weeks later, also on the Hoff, Lyndaker turned in the best regional finish of his career at the Mideast Regional, placing second in 25:11.5 and improving six spots on his eighth-place finish there in 2024. Earlier in the fall, Lyndaker won the Hoffmann Invitational in 25:14.8.