Skyhawks aim to match last year's first-place finish
NCAA Division II Cross Country East Region Championship Central
Dowd will run in his fourth NCAA Division II East Regional Championship |
EASTON, Massachusetts (November 16, 2018) – The Stonehill College men's cross country team, ranked No. 2 in the East Region in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches poll, will attempt to punch its 16th-straight ticket to the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships this Saturday, November 17 at Bethpage State Park in Bethpage, New York. The men's 10-kilometer race will begin at noon, while the women's squad will kick off at 1:15 p.m.
The Skyhawks came home with second place from the Northeast-10 Conference Championship two weekends ago, as they merely missed the title by seven points. Four of its top-seven runners earned All-Conference nods, including the runner up, senior Lucas Taxter. Taxter was six seconds behind the leader, American International College's Leakey Kipkosgei who has won three-straight NE10 individual titles, as Taxter collected his third All-Conference honor and will compete in his second East Regional Championship.
Classmates Alexander Demeule will appear in his third East Regional Championship, while Riley Dowd will toe the line in his fourth Championship. Demeule saw his best Championship run last season with a fourth-place mark, clocking in a time of 33:25.4, as he finished fourth at the NE10 Championship for his third All-Conference accolade. Dowd has placed 10th in the last two Championships and finished fifth at the NE10 Championships two weekends ago for his third All-Conference honor.
McNamee will be running in his first NCAA Division II East Regional Championship |
Freshman Nickolas McNamee will compete in his first East Regional Championship as he collected his first All-Conference honor, placing 21st, his third top-25 mark of the year. Sophomores Kevin Wheelock and Jeff Pichie will also run in their first NCAA Division II East Regional Championship. Wheelock finished 25th, while Pichie placed 26th at the NE10 Championship.
Senior Christopher Drace aims to best his 26th-place finish in last years' East Regional Championship, and was 29th this year at the NE10 Championship.
With a top-three finish on Saturday, Stonehill would advance to its 16th consecutive NCAA Division II Cross Country Championship. The event will take place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for the NCAA Division II National Championships Festival.
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