By Delaney Lanker, news correspondent

Rusted old remains of a bear cage sit atop a steep hill in Franklin Park, almost taunting the runners pushing their way to the top.

Franklin Park, a popular New England zoo, is also home to an eight-kilometer cross country course for Battle in Beantown. Bear Cage Hill is one of the last and most difficult portions of the course.

Battle in Beantown will be held this Friday, Sept. 26. The competition brings in schools from across the country, including Northeastern, Boston College, Boston University, Providence College, Syracuse University, Cornell University, University of Oregon and University of Wisconsin.

“I’m really excited to compete against some of the top guys in the country on our home course,” Zachary Fraielli, a Northeastern senior sociology major said.

Oregon sophomore Edward Cheserek, the 2013 NCAA Champion, will be competing in the race.

“It gives me a chance to push myself,” Fraielli said of the challenge. “This is my last year of eligibility, so I will leave everything I have on the course,” he added.

Earlier this season, Fraielli helped lead the men’s cross country team to a first place finish at the Shawn M. Nassaney Invitational in Smithfield, R.I., where he finished first with a time of 15:25.3. Fraielli was named a Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Men’s Runner of the Week earlier this season. He followed this by being named the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Men’s Runner of the Week two days later on Sept. 11.

Fraielli’s teammate, sophomore biology major Paul Duffey said Franklin Park is not an easy course.

“It starts on a flat grass plane, but the race trail forms a bottleneck 100 meters in, which encourages pushing, and it can get pretty aggressive early on, especially since everyone is right next to each other in the beginning,” Duffey said. “The rest is a bit rocky as it goes into the woods and there are a lot of hills, which kill runners at the end.”

The course is the longest in which the Northeastern team has competed so far this season, but sophomore undeclared major Jordan O’Dea, of the women’s team, is excited for the upcoming race.

“Last year, I wasn’t able to run in this race, so I am excited to be able to join my teammates on the starting line and run a competitive race on one of my favorite courses,” O’Dea said.

O’Dea led the NU women’s team to a third place finish earlier in the season at the Nassaney Invitational, finishing first in the five-kilometer race with a time of 17:53. Along with Fraielli, she was named both CAA and ECAC Women’s Runner of the Week on Sept. 9 and 11.

Last year at the Battle in Beantown, the Northeastern men’s team finished fifth, and the women’s team finished 12th. This year, the Huskies are looking to improve on the 2013 season’s finish.

“This year, our team has much more depth compared to last year, which is really encouraging,” Duffey said. “We know we’re way better off now than we were this time last year.”

O’Dea shares similar feelings about the strength of the Northeastern men’s and women’s cross country teams in the upcoming meet.

“I’m very excited to see how we do as a team because I know that there are some very strong and talented runners on this roster that are going to continue to do well and thrive and surprise themselves,” O’Dea said.

Photo courtesy of Northeastern Athletics