Cross Country Has Strong Showing at Alliance Meet
Paxton, Mass. -- Keene State College captured the team title at the 14th Annual New England Alliance Men's Cross Country Championships and the women's team captured the 11th Annual New England Alliance Women's Cross Country Championship on Saturday morning at Moore State Park, as the Owls also won their second straight and fourth overall Little East Conference crown.
On the women's side, the Owls posted a team score of 19 points to best runner-up Southern Maine by 63 points in the competition and in the process claiming their 11th straight Little East Conference title as well. Westfield State and Bridgewater State tied for third place with team scores of 111 points, while UMass Dartmouth followed with 122 points in fifth place in the event that combines competition between the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference and the Little East Conference.
Keene State junior Paige Mills (Keene, N.H.) took top individual honors in the competition, as she posted a time of 18:10.4 over the 5K layout to best junior teammate Andrea Walsh (Bolton, Conn.) by 50 seconds and senior teammate Amy Knoblock (Plymouth, Mass.) by a full minute in the runner-up and third place positions, respectively. The Owls completed their team scoring with a fifth place effort from sophomore Maggie Fitter (Branford, Conn.) of 19:26.2 and an eighth place performance by junior Haley Lydstone (Bedford, N.H.) of 20:09.6.
UMass Dartmouth freshman Dekontee Chea (Chelmsford, Mass.) placed fourth with a time of 19:20.7, while Southern Maine sophomore Molly Carl (York, Maine) was sixth with a time of 19:27.2. Bridgewater State junior Molly Rouillard (Dartmouth, Mass.) and senior Jessica Eidinger (Sutton, Mass.) finished in seventh and ninth place, respectively, with times of 19:49.9 and 20:13.2, while Rhode Island College senior Katie Desrosiers (Warwick, R.I.) rounded out the top 10 individual finishers with a time of 20:15.2
Worcester State (158), Eastern Connecticut (176), Rhode Island College (178), Salem State (261) and Framingham State (315) rounded out the top 10 team scores in the New England Alliance, followed respectively by Fitchburg State (323), MCLA (329) and Massachusetts Maritime (378).
On the men's side the Owls had three of the top four runners in the event to post a team score of 36 points in outdistancing runner-up Southern Maine's score of 65 points for both the Alliance and Little East titles. Westfield State and UMass Dartmouth followed in third and fourth places, respectively, with team scores of 117 and 123 points, while Bridgewater State was fifth in the final standings with a team score of 141 points in the event that combines competition between the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference and the Little East Conference.
Salem State junior Alex Gomes (Peabody, Mass.) followed up his winning performance in last week's MASCAC Championships by taking top individual honors in the New England Alliance Championships, as he covered the 8K layout in a time of 25:59.9 to best Keene State senior Eric MacKnight (Newtown, Conn.) by eight seconds in the runner-up spot. Keene State junior Kevin Hoyt (Newtown, Conn.) and senior Tim Pipp (Keene, N.H.) followed in third and fourth place, respectively, with times of 26:19.5 and 26:22.1, while the Fitchburg State tandem of senior Matt Spano (Gardner, Mass.) and junior Chris Kibler (Bath, Maine) were next in fifth and sixth place, respectively, with times of 26:40.9 and 26:52.2. UMass Dartmouth senior Nick Santoro (Shrewsbury, Mass.) finished seventh with a time of 26:54.2, while Southern Maine junior Erich Neuts (Portland, Maine) and sophomore Dylan Lajoie (Lewiston, Maine) sandwiched Bridgewater State sophomore Stephen Wahome's (Lowell, Mass.) in placing eighth and 10th, respectively, with times of 27:00.7 and 27:14.8, as Wahome clocked in with a ninth place time of 27:12.8.
Fitchburg State (149), Rhode Island College (201), Eastern Connecticut (218), Massachusetts Maritime (243) and Salem State (254) rounded out the top 10 team scores in the New England Alliance, followed respectively by Worcester State (306), MCLA (374) and UMass Boston (395).
Release courtesy of MASCAC Sports Information.