FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Colby-Sawyer men win title in first year
WESTON, Mass. – The Colby-Sawyer men's outdoor track & field team won the 2019 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Championship held at Regis College this weekend.
The meet featured three conference championships, including the GNAC, the North Atlantic Conference (NAC), and the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC).
The winners of each event were named to the GNAC All-Conference team following the meet.
Colby-Sawyer was voted the pre-championship favorite and delivered the title in its first season with the conference.
Junior Peter Bakker (Barkhamsted, Conn.) came away with a New England Championship qualifying mark in the 3000-meter steeplechase to highlight several impressive performances throughout the weekend from the Chargers. Bakker won the event with the lone sub-10 minute time as he crossed the finish line in 9:55.35.
The Chargers had nice pack of runners in the 5k to pile up important points in the GNAC standings. Junior Liam Fleming (Orford, N.H.) paced the group with a time of 15:55.19 and was followed by junior Ben Jones (Enfield, N.H.) at 15:57.34 and Bakker at 15:58.75. The three runners finished fourth, fifth and sixth overall, but were the top three finishers from the GNAC.
Fleming was also the top GNAC finisher, second overall, in the 10k with a time of 34:09.68. Jones was right behind Fleming in the GNAC results at 34:38.48 and placed fifth overall.
Sophomore Kyle Hajj (Methuen, Mass.) posted a long jump distance of 6.03 meters to lead the GNAC. Senior Michael Bullen (Franklin, Mass.) was close behind in third at 5.88 meters. Hajj also had a solid showing in the 800-meter run. He was fifth overall and second in the GNAC with a time of 2:03.39. Bullen turned in a second place effort in the javelin with a distance of 47.40 meters.
In the hurdle events, first-year Jacob Nichol (Concord, N.H.) came away with a victory in the 400 with the only sub-minute time at 59.09. He also was third overall and second in the GNAC with a finals time of 17.40 in the 110.
Sophomore Bryce Carlson (Hampton Falls, N.H.) was the top GNAC competitor in the pole vault with a height of 3.05 meters. He was fourth overall.
Sophomore Shawn Spenard (Northwood, N.H.) was second in the GNAC and eighth overall in the triple jump with a distance of 12.32 meters.
In the discus throw, senior Chase Gendron (Raymond, Maine) placed second in conference and sixth overall with a mark of 34.63 meters. Senior Andrew Dalencourt (Nashua, N.H.) was right behind in third/seventh at 34.11 meters. Gendron also posted a mark of 11.67 meters to finish third in the GNAC in the shot put.
Members of the Colby-Sawyer track and field team will compete at the New England Championships held at Williams College next weekend.
Courtesy of Ryan Emerson, Colby-Sawyer Athletics Communications.
FOR THE RECORD – MEN:
- 3000-Meter Steeplechase: Hendricks, 10:19.02 (Hendricks, 10:23.96, 4/6/19)
- 4x800-Meter Relay: Mason, Rice, Whitlock, Hendricks, 8:34.44 (8:46.08, 4/29/18)
- Triple Jump: Fitzgerald, 12.33m (Fitzgerald, 12.21m, 4/20/19)
- Shot Put: Blagys, 10.72m (Carlson, 10.67m, 4/4/15)
Regis women repeat as champions
WESTON, Mass. – In a close contest throughout the two-day meet, Regis College was able to prevail and win its second straight Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championship Sunday afternoon at Regis Stadium.
Fatima St. Hilaire (Dorchester, Mass.) won four individual conference titles, two on the track and two in the jumping events. After posting the fastest preliminary time among GNAC competitors in the 100 meter dash at 12.46 seconds, she finished first in the league in the final at 12.57 seconds. Cassandra Froio (Tewksbury, Mass.) ended up fourth with a time of 13.62 seconds, just ahead of Emily Fagundo (Dover, N.H.) in fifth place in 13.70 seconds.
St. Hilaire also led a strong Pride showing in the 200 meter dash, finishing first in 27.72 seconds. Froio finished third in the GNAC in 28.32 seconds, followed by Lourdes Jean-Louis (Pelham, Mass.) in fifth place in 28.34 seconds and Fagundo in sixth place in 28.59 seconds.
The senior won the long jump with a top mark of 5.52 meters (18' 1.5"), and then she finished atop the triple jump standings by almost one full meter with a top leap of 11.52 meters (37' 9.5"), breaking her own school record by 0.04 meters.
The Pride also performed well in the throwing events, led by two individual GNAC victories for senior Liz Ksepka(Calais, Vt.). She won the shot put with a top mark of 11.36 meters (37' 3.25"), followed by Elliana Boebel(Bedford, Mass.) in third place at 10.78 meters (35' 4.5") and Elisabeth Cooke (East Longmeadow, Mass.) in fourth place at 10.25 meters (33' 7.5").
Ksepka also won the discus throw by posting a top mark of 33.18 meters (108' 10"), with Cooke finishing right behind her in second at 32.88 meters (107' 10"). Cooke also finished third in the hammer throw with a mark of 32.61 meters (107'), behind Boebel's second-place effort of 36.66 meters (120' 3"). Jacqueline Samse(Wethersfield, Conn.) finished third in the GNAC in the javelin throw at 28.39 meters (93' 2").
Back on the track, Maddie Boucias (Buckland, Mass.) finished second in the 3000 meter steeplechase, setting a new school record with a time of 12:04.98 to qualify for the New England Championships. Erin Kelley(Stoneham, Mass.) finished third in the GNAC in the 5000 meter run with a time of 20:54.56, while Ashleigh Kelley (Stoneham, Mass.) placed second in the 1500 meter run in 5:11.43 and fourth in the 800 meter run in 2:36.68.
In the hurdles, Karen Di (Lowell, Mass.) finished third in the 100 meter hurdles, improving upon her preliminary time of 17.10 seconds with a finals time of 16.94 seconds, and fifth in the 400 meter hurdles in 1:17.24. Malaysia Cabral (Boston, Mass.) posted one of the fastest times overall in the preliminaries of the 100 meter hurdles at 16.86 seconds before finishing sixth in the finals.
Jean-Louis led Regis in the 400 meter dash, finishing second in 1:03.86, followed by Erin Sheehan (Pembroke, Mass.) in fifth place in 1:05.32 and Fagundo in sixth place in 1:05.88. The three freshmen joined St. Hilaire for a second place finish in the 4x400 meter relay with a time of 4:27.07. The Kelley sisters, Boucias, and Desiree Jones (Oceanside, Calif.) smashed the school record in the 4x800 meter relay Saturday night, finishing third in the GNAC in 10:49.53, over 45 seconds faster than the previous record set three years ago.
As a team, the Pride collected 167 points, 12 points in front of second place Emmanuel. Colby-Sawyer finished third with 122 points, followed by Saint Joseph's College with 107 points and Suffolk with 75 points.
Regis will send representatives to Williamstown, Mass., for the Division III New England Outdoor Track and Field Championships, hosted by Williams College next weekend, May 3-4.
Courtesy of Jason Behenna, Regis Athletics Communications.
FOR THE RECORD – WOMEN:
- 10000-Meter Run: Quirion, 44:35.91 (Quirion, 45:40.37, 3/30/19)
- 4x100-Meter Relay: Todisco, Hoffman, Lee, Smith, 52.08 (52.12, 4/30/17)
- 4x800-Meter Relay: VanDeMoere, Heroux, Glisson, Curtin, 10:34.64 (11:26.96, 4/14/19)
- Pole Vault: Curtin, 2.15m (Curtin, 2.00m, 4/14/19)
- Hammer Throw: LeMoine, 32.11m (LeMoine, 30.27, 4/6/19)
The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 13 member institutions and over 3,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 20 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.
– #TheGNAC –