Women's Outdoor Team Defends Title, Claiming 2023 GNAC Track & Field Crown

THE BASICS 

Scores: 
Women's Team Total: 175 (1^st of 5)
Men's Team Total: 50 (5^th of 5)

Meet: Great Northeast Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships
Location/Host: Standish, Maine – Saint Joseph's College (ME) 
Date: Sunday, April 30, 2023

THE LEAD – On a rainy, cold, late-April day, the Women's Great Northeast Athletic Conference Outdoor Track and Field Meet came down to the final events, and by just a margin of eight points over second place Regis, the Emmanuel women's program defended their crown, winning the GNAC Outdoor Women's Championship for a second consecutive year.

WOMEN'S HIGHLIGHTS

• Over the two-day meet, the Saints gathered three first-place finishes, starting with Saturday's performance in the 4x800 meter relay by senior Elizabeth Cameron (Raynham, Mass.), junior Emma Krantz (Manchester, N.H.), sophomore Desiree Robinson (New Haven, Conn.), and first-year Sydney Gonzalez (Guilderland, N.Y.), winning the event with a time of 10:39.57.
• The other wins in events for the Saints waited until Sunday with Robinson claiming victory in the high jump, clearing the bar at 1.47 meters. First-year Paula Salazar (Cumberland, R.I.) picked up the win in the pole vault with a height of 2.20 meters cleared.
• But despite just the three event wins for Emmanuel, it was their numerous second and third place finishes that helped defend their title.
• Nearly sweeping all the points in the pole vault, Salazar was joined by junior Beverly Browne (Amesbury, Mass.), sophomore Naomi Obenhaus (Sabattus, Maine), first-year Tiffany Fischer (South River, N.J.) and Robinson in second, third, fourth, and fifth respectively, claiming 30 of a possible 31 points in the event.
• Cameron, who collectively ran nearly 20,000 meters over the two days, came through in distance running, scoring a second-place finish in the 10K with a time of 42:02.06. She added a pair of third place finishes in the 5K, at a time of 20:29.31, and the 1,500-meter race, with a time of 5:26.59.
• Among other second place finishes were first-year Victoria Bettencourt (Swansea, Mass.) in the triple jump with a distance of 9.68 meters. Sophomore Alyssa French-Graham (Waterbury, Conn.), who took second in the shot put with a throw of 9.77 meters. Finally, Fischer adds another second place for Emmanuel, claiming the spot in the javelin with her throw of 27.28 meters.
• Third-place finishes include sophomore Cynthia Brito (Whitman, Mass.) taking third in the triple jump with a distance of 9.63 meters. Browne in the 100-meter hurdles took home third with a time of 17.69. Obenhaus came in with third place in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 1:18.75. Rounding out the group, Robinson added a pair of thirds with a 400-meter time of 1:07.30 and a long jump distance of 4.40 meters.
• Other Saints stepped up to provide valuable points for the team on Sunday, including seniors Kate Elliott (Carmel, Ind.) and Molly Winship (Boxford, Mass.), who placed fourth and fifth, respectively in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, adding six points to the team score.
• Senior Mia Rowell (Candia, N.H.) came in with four points and a fourth-place finish in the 10K. Gonzalez chipped in with four points and a fourth-place finish in the 800-meter run. Krantz picked up four total points and a pair of fifth-place finishes in the 800-meter and 1,500-meter runs.
• Obenhaus claimed two more points in the 100-meter hurdles. Brito scored two more points with the help of a fifth in the 400-meter hurdles. Browne kicked in four more points with the long jump while sophomore Shakirah Ketant (Easton, Mass.) posted a fourth-place in the javelin for four more points.

MEN'S HIGHLIGHTS

• For the Saints men, sophomore Matthew Steffan (Quincy, Mass.) grabbed first-place honors in the discus with a throw of 31.90 meters, setting a new PR by nearly 1.50 meters, approximately 4-feet-9-inches.
• First-year Pierre Paul Labossierre (Port-au-Prince, Haiti) posted a third place finish in the triple jump with a leap of 11.30 meters. Along with his third in the triple jump, Labossierre added a fourth place in the high jump, clearing the bar at 1.70 meters.
• First-year Luke Wiley (East Wareham, Mass.) rounds out the Saints with podium finishes in the GNAC Championship, posting a third-place finish in the long jump with a distance of 6.00 meters.
• Other Saints came through with fourth-place finishes on Sunday, including first-year Mikel Lacroix (Cumberland, R.I.), who placed fourth in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.74 seconds.
• Fellow first-year Adam Von-Maszewski (Westborough, Mass.) was fourth in the 110-meter hurdles, completing the event in 17.99 seconds.
• Sophomore AJ Godios (Hamburg, N.Y.) threw the javelin 37.12 meters, shattering his previous best by 3.08 meters, resulting in a fourth place finish on Sunday.

FINAL STANDINGS (WOMEN)
1) Emmanuel – 175
2) Regis – 167
3) Colby-Sawyer – 119
4) St. Joseph's (ME) – 104
5) Lasell – 75

FINAL STANDINGS (MEN)
1) St. Joseph's (ME) – 213
2) Regis – 185
3) Colby-Sawyer – 138
4) Lasell – 56
5) Emmanuel - 50