Salve Regina men third at UNE Invitational

BIDDEFORD, Maine - Salve Regina sophomore Sean Hughes (Old Saybrook, Conn.) earned a top 10 finish and freshman Billy Martin (West Islip, N.Y.) led a tight scoring pack as the Seahawks finished third in the University of New England Invitational on Saturday.

Lyndon State College won the meet with a team score of 32, led by a 1-2 finish from Kyle Powers and Tyler Scheibenpflug. UNE finished second with 62 points, and Salve Regina scored 95 points to take third in the field of 13 teams.

Hughes went out to a gradual start on the Rotary Park course, holding a spot in the top 20 during the opening 2,000-meter loop, and working his way into the top 10 on the later 3,000-meter loops in the later stages of the race. Hughes crossed the finish line in 27:18 to place seventh in the field of 123.

The Seahawks second, third, fourth and fifth runners - Martin, Anthony Tandy (Hopedale, Mass.), Tyler Torelli (Ledyard, Conn.) and Timothy Roosa (Woodbury, Conn.) - took a measured approach to the opening miles, with Roosa setting the pace for the freshmen in their first collegiate race at 8,000 meters. Martin later worked his way into the top 15, crossing the finish line in 28:24. Tandy (28:47), Torelli (28:56) and Roosa (29:04) were not far behind to round out the scoring. Jay Brennan (North Haven, Conn.) and Kevin Onofreo (Middlefield, Conn.) were the Seahawks' sixth and seventh runners at 29:43 and 30:41.

"The team had a great all-around effort today. Sean Hughes executed his race strategy well, with a conservative start and some well-timed moves during the second 3,000-meter loop," said head coach Dave Kraszewski. "It was encouraging to see Slater Roosa lead our top freshmen through the early stages of the race. His skillful pacing put our second, third, fourth and fifth runners in position to succeed in the later stages of the race. When Billy Martin, Anthony Tandy and Tyler Torelli picked up their pace on the last loop, they were able to sustain it for a strong finish."

The course at Rotary Park is the site of the Commonwealth Coast Conference Championship meet on Nov. 2. Saturday's meet offered a preview of the course, though heavy rain on Friday forced meet officials to redirect portions of the 3,000-meter "B Loop" on both the 5K and 8K courses.

Other Salve Regina finishers included:

Matt Sinkewicz (Colchester, Conn.) - 32:21
Jack Simpson (Lynn, Mass.) - 32:59
Daniel LaBrie (East Providence, R.I.) - 33:04

Click here to view complete race results.

Salve Regina returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 21 at the UMass-Dartmouth Invitational.

Courtesy of Rob McGuinness

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