Salve Regina men's cross country improves to fifth
BRISTOL, R.I. - The five Salve Regina scorers ran their fastest 8,000-meter races of 2015 to earn a much-improved fifth-place team finish in the Commonwealth Coast Conference Championship at Colt State Park on Saturday.
Senior captain Sean Hughes (Old Saybrook, Conn.) again led the way for the Seahawks, crossing the finish line in 26:59.14 to finish 11th in the field of 117 runners. Hughes' season-best performance stands at No. 7 on the university's all-time list for 8K and is the fastest time ever posted by a Salve Regina runner on the 8K layout at Colt State Park.
Junior captain Billy Martin (West Islip, N.Y.) returned to his usual No. 2 spot in the lineup, racing for the first time in more than a month. After running a conservative opening mile, Martin moved well during the second half of the race, gaining dozens of spots as the race moved into the fields and through the last loop of the trails. He finished at 28:00.68.
Sophomore David Napierkowski (Cheshire, Conn.) and freshman Tyler Lancaster (Warwick, R.I.) ran at No. 3 and No. 4 for Salve Regina, finishing at 28:20.29 and 28:29.30. Lancaster's performance marked a personal best at 8K. Junior captain Jay Brennan (North Haven, Conn.) rounded out the scoring, crossing the finish line in a personal best 28:41.26.
The Seahawks' combined team time of 2:20:30.67 – an average of 28:06.14 per man – stands at No. 2 on the program's all-time list, and the team's performance is an all-time best for Salve Regina at Colt State Park. The program's previous best in Bristol, with a lineup that also included Hughes and Martin, was nearly four minutes slower.
"The guys gave it everything they had today. What a turnaround from our finish in 2014. The CCC is much more competitive than it was a few years ago, and we knew that we needed to work hard to stay in the mix," said head coach Rob McGuinness. "This was, by far, our best race of the season. It couldn't have come at a better time."
Sophomores Andrew Sardelli (Hope Valley, R.I.) and Scott Brewer (Palmer, Mass.) were the sixth and seventh men for Salve Regina, finishing at 29:01.21 and 29:02.92. The race marked another personal best for Brewer, who shaved six seconds off his previous PR.
Other Salve Regina finishers included:
Senior captain Slater Roosa (Woodbury, Conn.) – 29:07.97
Junior Kevin Onofreo (Middlefield, Conn.) – 30:03.28
Freshman Dan Donnelly (Portsmouth, R.I.) – 30:20.42
Sophomore Collin Travassos (Barrington, R.I.) – 30:35.76
Sophomore Austin Sattler (Guilford, Conn.) – 30:55.96
Junior Anthony Tandy (Hopedale, Mass.) – 31:17.33
Junior Tyler Torelli (Ledyard, Conn.) – 31:20.73
Sophomore John Lutz (Ringwood, N.J.) – 31:30.50
Senior Dan LaBrie (East Providence, R.I.), senior Matt Sinkewicz (Colchester, Conn.), sophomore Neil Sheehan (Methuen, Mass.) and senior Dean Wollenberg (Hopkinton, R.I.) also competed, but were part of a large group of runners who took a wrong turn and added nearly a mile to the course. All four crossed the finish line.
The Wentworth Institute of Technology won the team title with a team score of 47. The Leopards placed three runners – sophomores Dan McSolla, Patrick Hopkins and Alex Robbins – inside the top 10 on the way to their first CCC championship. Roger Williams University finished second with 67 points, while the University of New England was third with 80. Just 32 points separated the next four teams – Endicott, Salve Regina, Gordon and Western New England. The Seahawks posted a team score of 120 for fifth place. Gordon College sophomore Damon Kilgore won the individual title, crossing the finish line at 25:49.44.
Salve Regina returns to action on Saturday, Nov. 7 in the ECAC Division III Cross Country Championship at Mt. Greylock Regional High School in Williamstown, Mass.
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Courtesy of Rob McGuinness
