Emmanuel Hosts 3rd Annual Saints Invitational

October 15, 2007

On Friday night, the Emmanuel Men's and Women's Cross Country Teams hosted the 3rd Annual Saints Invitational at Franklin Park. Fifteen women's teams competed in the 5K race and ten men's teams competed in the 8K race. Junior Christine Gaspar (Attleboro, MA) led the Emmanuel women to a 5th place finish, placing 4th out of the 87 female competitors with a time of 20:00. Senior Emily McCaffrey (East Greenwich, RI) finished 2nd for the Saints and 9th overall with a time of 20:53. Junior Anna Merrow (Kennebunkport, ME) ran 3rd for the Saints with a time of 23:48. Senior Keelyn Blanchfield (East Thetford, VT) and freshman Dana Griffin (Walpole, MA) were the 4th and 5th point scorers for Emmanuel with times of 23:51 and 24:22, respectively. The Emmanuel men were led by senior T.J. Griffis (Green Harbor, MA), who finished 16th out of the 75 runners with a time of 29:23. Senior Matt Hickey (North Attleboro, MA) was Emmanuel's 2nd runner and the 25th overall with a time of 30:34. Freshman Ben Cleveland (Auburn, ME) placed 3rd for the Saints with a time of 32:00. Sophomores Tim Flaherty (Mattapoisett, MA) and Joey Rugo (Grafton, MA) rounded out the top five for Emmanuel. The Saints will take this weekend off to rest up in preparation for the GNAC Championship meet on October 27th at Saint Joseph's College in Standish, ME.

The Women's Volleyball Team split in a GNAC tri-match in West Hartford, CT on Saturday. The Saints defeated host Saint Joseph College in straight sets, but fell to Lasell College in a 5-game match. Junior outside hitter Lindsey Parker (New Bedford, MA) led Emmanuel with 19 kills and 9 digs in the win over the Blue Jays. Parker also posted 18 kills and 8 digs in the loss to the Lasers. Freshman outside hitter Megan Murray (Killingworth, CT) added a combined 18 kills and 9 digs in the matches, while junior libero Amanda Machado (Swansea, MA) tallied a team high 30 digs. Senior setter Jen Walsh (West Springfield, MA) dished out 38 assists, while sophomore setter Diana Grimaldi (Sandy Hook, CT) added 30 helpers in the two matches. The Saints will host the Lions of Emerson College on Tuesday (10/16) at 7:00 pm. The three seniors on the team will be honored prior to the start of this match.

The Women's Soccer Team won their 10th-straight game on Saturday, defeating Mount Ida College, 5-1, at the Winsor School. The Mustangs jumped out to an early lead, scoring their lone goal of the game at the 5-minute mark. Emmanuel tied the game just 13 minutes later on an unassisted goal by rookie forward Amber Di Nucci (Assonet, MA). Freshman midfielder Kellie Scalora (Berlin, CT) came off the bench to net the Saints' 2nd goal and to give Emmanuel a 2-1 lead into halftime. It was all Emmanuel in the 2nd half, with the Saints' 3rd and 4th goals coming by way of sophomore forward Stephanie Levesque (Auburn, MA). Scalora assisted Levesque's first goal and Di Nucci dished out the assist on the second, picking up her 27th point of the season. Sophomore midfielder Kate McKenna (Holyoke, MA) capped off the Saints' scoring in the 80th minute with her 7th goal of the season and Emmanuel's 5th of the game. The Saints improved to 12-2-1 on the season, tying their program record for wins in a season, which was set by the GNAC Championship Team back in 2003. Emmanuel remains undefeated in GNAC play with a record of 11-0. The Saints will host the Gators of Pine Manor College on Wednesday night (10/17) at 6:30 pm.

The Women's Tennis Team picked up their sixth win of the season with a 7-2 victory over Saint Joseph College on Saturday. The Saints earned 5 wins at singles led by senior Anna Marie Podnecky's (Bridgewater Corners, VT) 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 victory. Sophomore Caitlin Kustes (Corfu, NY) and senior Cat Robinson (East Providence, RI) won in straight sets at 3rd and 4th singles, while freshman Catherine Dunphy (Duxbiry, MA) and senior Katie Silva (Lakeville, MA) won in straight sets at 5th and 6th singles, respectively. Emmanuel also posted two doubles victories on the day. Sophomore Nory Hayes (Newport, RI) and senior Jamie Kenyon (Ware, MA) teamed up for an 8-2 win at first doubles, while freshmen Taylor Kelly (Poughkeepsie, NY) and Alexandra Shakra (Bedford, NH) notched the win at third doubles. The 6-4 Saints will play again on Thursday (10/18) at 6:30 pm against the visiting Leopards of Wentworth Institute of Technology. The five seniors on the team will be honored prior to the start of this match.