EMMANUEL MEN TAKE 2ND, WOMEN PLACE 4TH AT GNAC CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

NASHUA, N.H. - The 18th running of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Cross Country Championships took place on the campus of Rivier University on Saturday, October 27th. For the third consecutive time, Johnson & Wales University captured the women's team championship. Norwich University claimed the men's team title. The Emmanuel men placed second behind Norwich, while the Emmanuel women finished in fourth place.

Rivier hosted the 2012 Championship, which was held in Nashua, N.H. for the first time since 2009. A perfect day for racing featured partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the lower 60s.

The women's 5k race featured Johnson and Wales edging out runner-up Saint Joseph's College (Me.) to claim their third-straight and sixth overall GNAC Cross Country Championship. The Wildcats finished with a team total of 47 points. The Monks locked up second place with 55 points, while the second-year varsity program at Simmons College placed third with 85 points – the second straight third place finish for the Sharks.

Saint Joseph's College sophomore Amber Dostie (Standish, Me.) cruised to a 1st place win along with claiming the Runner of the Year honors for the second consecutive year. Dostie paced the field of 143 runners and finished the 5k race in a speedy 19:19. Johnson & Wales senior Laura Furaro (North Warren, N.J.) finished in 2nd with a time of 20:04. Saint Joseph's College freshman Lauren Rabideau (Ballston Spa, N.Y.) raced to a 3rd place time of 20:17.2 and earned GNAC Rookie of the Year honors. Teammate Heather Eaton (Lincolnville, Me) was just .2 behind her to finish in 4th place with a time of 20:17.4. Emerson College sophomore Ali Dokus (Littleton, Mass.) claimed 5th place as she crossed the line at 20:21.

Following the top-five, JWU's Jessica Klepper (Long Valley, N.J.), Norwich's Mallory Clark (Homer City, Pa.), Simmons' Nicole Chao (Fremont, Calif.), JWU's Kate Levinson (Moorestown, N.J.) and Saint Joseph's Ashley Condon (Sumner, Me.) each earned GNAC All-Conference honors with their top-ten finishes.  St. Joseph's Head Coach Ray Puntam was selected the 2012 GNAC Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year.

After taking second place as a team just last year, the Emmanuel women lost out on the third spot by just three points to Colleges of the Fenway rival Simmons College.  The Saints had their top five runners all finish within 31 seconds of each other, but the scoring was only good enough for fourth place.

Emmanuel was led by junior Amy DeNuzzio (Windham, N.H.), who ran her best race of the season.  DeNuzzio ran 1^st for the Saints and 13^th overall in a time of 21:18.  Senior captain Joslyn DelSignore (Taunton, Mass.) finished 2^nd for the Saints and 14^th overall with her time of 21:27.  Junior Danielle Martin (York, Me.) followed DelSignore with her 16^th place finish and time of 21:34.  Classmate Molly Metivier (Keene, N.H.) scored fourth for Emmanuel and 21^st overall in 21:44.  Freshman Janelle Winship (Prospect, Me.) rounded out the Saints' scoring with her 24^th place finish in 21:49.

On the men's side, after a 2^nd place finish in 2011, Norwich University captured the 2012 GNAC Championship, as four Cadets were able to finish in the top 10. Freshman Adam Miller (Claremont, N.H.) was the top Cadet runner, as he crossed the line at 26:40, finishing third overall and was named the GNAC Rookie of the Year.

JWU senior Jeff Hartman (Osseo, Minn.) earned back-to-back GNAC Runner of the Year honors after pacing the field of 91 male runners with his 8k time of 25:51. Emerson's Kyle Oppenheimer (Kingston, N.H.) captured 2nd place with a time of 26:37, followed by Miller in third. JWU's Brian Dinan (Geneva, N.Y.) came in fourth with a time of 26:42 and fifth place belonged to Lasell's Alex Weselcouch (East Haddam, Conn.) as he checked in with a 26:46 mark.

Also earning GNAC All-Conference honors with their top-ten finishes were Norwich's Luke Moeckel (Bradenton, Fla.) and David Rosenthal (Pasadena, Md.), followed by Anna Maria College's Nick Hummel (Wilbraham, Mass.), JWU's David Tores (Ann Arbor, Mich.) and Emmanuel College's Nate Bruno (Lenox, Mass.).

For the third year in a row, Emmanuel College Head Coach Tony DaRocha received GNAC Coach of the Year honors. DaRocha was voted the GNAC Men's Coach of the Year by his peers, an honor he also received back in 2010.  Last year, DaRocha was selected the 2011 GNAC Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year.

With high hopes of the program's first-ever GNAC title, the Emmanuel men were nipped by a strong showing from the Cadets.  Following Bruno's 9^th place run in 27:30, the Saints finished in a pack, scoring in spots 12-15. Juniors Pat Callan (Pawling, N.Y.) and Michael Morris took 12^th and 13^th place, respectively, with their times of 27:34 and 27:59. Sophomore Brian Collins (Hull, Mass.) had a great performance, scoring in his first race of the season for the Saints. Collins finished 14^th with his personal record time of 28:01.  Senior captain Abdi Ibrahim (East Boston, Mass.) finished 5^th for the Saints and 15^th overall with his time of 28:02.

Complete 2012 GNAC Women's Championship Results

Complete 2012 GNAC Men's Championship Results

*Release content courtesy of Rivier University Sports Information