Waller paces Skyhawks with 96th place finish
SPOKANE, Wash. (November 23, 2013) – The Stonehill College men's cross country team, ranked 20th in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Division II poll, and ranked first in the East Region, placed 28th overall among 32 teams competing at today's NCAA Championship held at the Plantes Ferry Athletic Complex in Spokane.
Senior Scott Waller led the Skyhawks with his personal best 96th place finish at the NCAA Championships. (PHOTO BY Shawn Toner) |
Senior Scott Waller (Andover, Mass./Andover) was the first Stonehill student-athlete to complete today's ten kilometer course, placing 96th overall in 32:12.10. Waller was able to top both of his finishes in past NCAA Championships, as he placed 141st as a sophomore in 2011 and 124th as a freshman in 2010.
Waller was followed by sophomore Robert Massey (Chelmsford, Mass./Chelmsford), who was Stonehill's top finisher two weekends ago at the East Region Championship. Today, the sophomore posted a 33:04.4 mark, good for 163rd place overall.
Senior Stephen Leonard (Chatham, N.J./Chatham) and junior captain Bryan Wilcox (Plantsville, Conn./Southington) were the next two Stonehill competitors to cross the finish line, at 172nd and 176th respectively. Leonard earned a 33:09.1 mark, while Wilcox checked in at 33:12.5. Like Waller, Leonard was able to top his past NCAA Championship finish, as the senior placed 215th a season ago.
Junior Tabor Stevens of Adams State University (Colo.) won the individual title with a time of 29.50.1, and Adams State also took the team crown with a convincing 54 point effort. Grand Valley State placed second with 104 points, followed by Augustana College (S.D.) with 122 points, Western State (Colo.) with 137 points, and Colorado Mines (187 points).
Rounding out Stonehill's participants today were seniors Nathaniel Webber (Atkinson, N.H./Central Catholic), Trent Fontanella (Pelham, N.H./Bishop Guertin), and Daniel Zawalich (Paxton, Mass./St. John's). Webber placed 218th overall in 34:13.20, followed by Fontanella in 237th with a 35:18.50 mark, and Zawalich rounded out Stonehill's effort by finishing 243rd overall in 35:53.1.
2013 Northeast-10 and East Region Coach of the Year Karen Boen noted her team's toughness and resiliency in a year that saw a large portion of the team hit with illness. "Our hardships throughout the season really took their toll on us, the guys were worn out after a long and difficult season," Boen said. "Every week we had a couple of guys that were sick, and we had injuries this season that caught up with us. We fought some hard fights to get here, and I'm proud of the guys."
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