Martin paces Seahawks at Purple Valley Classic

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – Senior Billy Martin (West Islip, N.Y.) led the way for Salve Regina in the team's second appearance in the Purple Valley Classic on Saturday. The captain crossed the finish line at 29:01.7, more than a minute faster than his previous performance on the 8K course at Mount Greylock Regional High School.

Juniors Scott Brewer (Wilbraham, Mass.) and Andrew Sardelli (Hope Valley, R.I.) ran in the second and third spots for Salve Regina, finishing at 29:24.5 and 29:53.9. Brewer reached the 3 mile mark at 17:30, just four seconds behind Martin, and also made a marked improvement over his previous run at Williamstown.

Freshman Brett Jutras (East Bridgewater, Mass.) and sophomore Dan Donnelly (Portsmouth, R.I.) rounded out the scoring for the Seahawks, crossing the finish line at 30:02.0 and 30:22.8. Donnelly continued the trend of improved performances, dropping 1 minute, 22 seconds from last year.

Junior David Napierkowski (Cheshire, Conn.) and freshman Riley Rancourt (Warren, R.I.) ran at No. 6 and No. 7 for Salve Regina, finishing at 30:43.2 and 30:48.9.

Other Salve Regina finishers included:

Senior Jay Brennan (North Haven, Conn.) – 31:01.4

Freshman Brendan Kelly (Lynbrook, N.Y.) – 32:03.9

Senior Kevin Onofreo (Middlefield, Conn.) – 32:33.7

Freshman Chandler Da Cruz (Middletown, R.I.) was the top Seahawk in the 5K sub-varsity race, finishing in a collegiate-best 19:49.6.

Salve Regina finished 19th of 23 teams in a field that included 12 teams with regional or national rankings. The meet upheld its reputation as a high-caliber event, with SUNY Geneseo (No. 1, Atlantic Region; No. 2, National) capturing the team title with a score of 48. Williams College (No. 1, New England Region; No. 3 National) was second with 64.

The Seahawks return to action at the Tri-State Invitational at the Community College of Rhode Island on Saturday, Oct. 1.