CROSS COUNTRY MEN AND WOMEN TAKE 2ND AT FENS CLASSIC

BOSTON, Mass. – The Emmanuel College Men's and Women's Cross Country Teams opened the 2012 season by hosting the 4th Annual Fens Classic, featuring a 2 mile course for the women and a 5k for the men through Boston's historic Backbay Fens area and finishing on the track circling Roberto Clemente Field.  The Roger Williams University Hawks took 1st place in both the women's and the men's races, while Emmanuel College and Wheaton College finished second and third, respectively, in each meet.

Roger Williams sophomore Hannah Zydanowicz paced the field and cruised in over a half a minute ahead of any other competitors in the women's race, finishing in 11:46.  Zydanowicz's time was a new course record, breaking that set by Leah Clement of Wellesley College last year.  The Hawks placed all five of their point-scorers in the top ten, finishing with a low score of 27 points.

Wheaton's Jordan Silva and Shoshana Kruskl snagged 2nd and 3rd place, finishing in 12:21 and 12:36, respectively.  The second Roger Williams runner to cross the line was junior Katie O'Koren, who came in at 12:42.  Emmanuel's senior captain Joslyn DelSignore (Taunton, Mass.) finished in 12:45, cutting twenty-two seconds off her time from last season.

For the Hawks, Haylee Kurkoski (12:49), Lauren Riccardi (12:50) and Sarah Dugas (12:52) placed 6th, 7th and 9th, to round out the scoring for Roger Williams.  Emmanuel freshman Julie Roberts (Williamsburg, Mass.) and junior Molly Metivier (Keene, N.H.) finished in 8th and 10th place with times of 12:51 and 13:03, respectively.

Freshman Chloe Pangonis (Keene, N.H.) and junior Danielle Martin (York, Me.) rounded out the top five for the Saints, giving Emmanuel 52 total points.  Both Emmanuel and Wheaton finished with 52 team points, forcing the scores of the 6th and 7th runners for each team to count and break the tie.  Juniors Amy DeNuzzio (Windham, N.H.) and Meaghan Mauer (South Hadley, Mass.) came in 6th and 7th for the Saints with times of 13:14 and 13:42, solidifying second place for the hosts.

Lesley University finished in forth place with 120 points.  Emilia McGrath led the Lynx with her time of 13:04, placing 11th individually.  Lasell finished in fifth with 132 points, led by Solange Carpenter's 22nd place time of 14:10.  Danielle Gaudette led Wheelock College with a time of 16:03.

The men's 5k also featured a new course record. Roger Williams junior Jack Ferguson completed his race in 16:29 to take the win, improving from his second place finish at this meet in 2011.  Senior Steven Carnevale grabbed 2nd place, coming in just three seconds behind Ferguson.  Two rookies, Chris Busby and Doug Sasso, and senior Jeff Pini, then placed 6th, 7th and 8th for the Hawks, giving Roger Williams a low score of 24 points and the team win.  

Emmanuel junior Pat Callan (Pawling, N.Y.) led the field for much of the race and finished in 3rd place with a time of 16:41.  Lesley University's Nick Green placed 4th in 16:54, while Nick Emard led Wheaton with his 5th place time of 16:55.

Two Wheaton runners, Michael Richard and Harry Bachrach, rounded out the top ten, with times of 17:04 and 17:18, respectively.  Wheelock's top finisher was Paul Collins, who came in at 21:04.

Emmanuel junior Chris Baker (Holden, Mass.) earned 13th place with a time of 17:24.  Classmate Nate Bruno (Lenox, Mass.) was the Saints' third runner to cross the line, finishing in 17:28.  Senior captain Abdi Ibrahim (East Boston, Mass.) placed 4th for the Saints and 16th overall, while freshman Thomas Tallo (Lincoln, R.I.) scored 5th for the Saints in his collegiate debut, giving Emmanuel 66 team points.

Wheaton finished third as a team with 73 points.  Lesley finished in fourth with 89 points and Lasell came in fifth with 113 team points.

The Saints will be back in action next Saturday, September 8th, when they travel to Bristol Rhode Island's Colt State Park for a rematch with Roger Williams in the Roger Williams University Invitational.  The women's race is slated to begin at 11:00 AM and the men's race will begin at noon.