Lesley Sweeps Men's, Women's Titles at Annual NECC Cross Country Championships
Nashua – Lesley University captured both the men's and women's cross country New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Championship Saturday at a chilled Mines Falls Park, hosted by Daniel Webster College.
Lesley dominated the women's race, scoring a perfect 15 points, to capture their fourth consecutive title, the only program to ever win the crown since the NECC began four seasons ago. The Lynx took the first seven spots paced by individual champion Leah Miller (Thomaston, Conn.) who won the 5k course in 19:07 with a 6:10 pace, outdistancing teammate Elise McKelvey (Baltimore, Ohio) who took second 40 seconds behind.
The Lynx were followed by Mitchell College (74 points), Wheelock College (97), Elms College (99), Bay Path College (130), host Daniel Webster (153) and Southern Vermont College (164), while Newbury College and Wheelock College did not score.
Lesley's Anastassia Lutkevich (Mansfield, Mass.), Keryn Thorvaldsen (Sayville, N.Y.), and Noa Kupfer (Woodbridge, Conn.) finished out the top five, respectively to take automatic first team all-conference honors.
The all-conference second team for finishers six through 10 respectively, included Lesley's Kat Vacino (Mattapoisett, Mass.) and Jacqueline Rosa (Wolcott, Conn.) along with Mitchell's Bridget Burns (Clark, N.J.) who placed eighth overall, taking top rookie honors, Lesley's Elissa May (Middleboro, Mass.) and Newbury's Solange Thomas (Webster, Mass.).
For the host Eagles, Sarah Paternostro (Glastonbury, Conn.) took 13th overall in 23:01. Antonina Feola (Simsbury, Conn.) placed 35th in 26:53, Alycia Gervais (Windham, Conn.) was 40th in 27:46, Jen Fredericks (Beacon Falls, Conn.) took 43rd in 27:52, Kacie Lang (Raymond, N.H.) was 44th in 28:07, and Alyssa Marson (Bangor, Maine) was 45th in 28:15.
On the MEN's side, Lesley earned their third successive title, besting the field with 23 points, followed by Mitchell (34), Daniel Webster (81), Southern Vermont (88), and Elms (138), while Newbury and Wheelock did not score.
Mitchell freshman Sherif Ali (Cliffside, Park, N.J.) took the individual crown to capture automatic player and rookie of the year honors, taking the five-mile course in 27:04 with a 5:25 pace. Ali edged out Lesley's Kyle Casiglio (Shelton, Conn.) who finished just six seconds behind.
Lesley's Evan Reseska (Holliston, Mass.) took third while teammate Chris Conforti (Brattleboro, Vt.) was fourth and Mitchell's Evan Garrity (Washington, Conn.) took fifth. The top five finishers earned automatic first team all-conference honors.
The second team all-conference squad, for those who placed 6th through 10th respectively, included Lesley's Max Bulger (Portland, Maine), Mitchell's Andrew Castagna (Westerly, R.I.), Lesley's Dillon Simmons, Daniel Webster's Josh Cosgrove (Sterling, Mass.), and Mitchell's Jake Ustjanauskas (West Hartford, Conn.).
Host Daniel Webster was also paced by Eric Caron (Groveton, N.H.) who took 12th in 31:36, Matthew Miller (East Granby, Conn.) who placed 21st in 33:05, Marty Davis (Bloomsburg, Penn.) who took 22nd in 33:44, Coby Costa (Bantam, Conn.) who was 26th in 36:25, and Darrik Marstaller (Spofford, N.H.) who took 30th in 37:31.
Amy Lane of Elms earned both men's and women's "Coach of the Year" honors for the first time. Newbury College earned the men's Team Sportsmanship Award for the second straight season and third time in four years, while Bay Path was honored with the women's Team Sportsmanship Award for the second straight season.
Courtesy of Daniel Webster Athletics
NECC Championships at Mines Falls Park, Nashua, NH
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2011 Men's 8K Results Lesley – 23 Runner of the Year: Sharif Ali, Mitchell First Team All-Conference Sharif Ali, Mitchell Second Team All-Conference Max Bulger, Lesley |
2011 Women's 5K Results Lesley – 15 Runner of the Year: Leah Miller, Lesley First Team All-Conference Leah Miller, Lesley Second Team All-Conference Kat Vicino, Lesley |
