Skyhawks to make 12^th-straight trip to NCAA Championships 

Senior tri-captain Jill Alves earns her fourth career All-East Region honor.

DORCHESTER, Mass. (November 6, 2011) – The Stonehill College women's cross country team, ranked 14th overall in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Division II national poll and first in the East Regional poll, solidified its regional ranking with its third-straight NCAA Division II East Regional title at Franklin Park on Sunday afternoon. 

The Skyhawks, coming off of their third-straight Northeast-10 Conference (NE-10) championship two weeks ago, advance to the NCAA Division II Championships for the 12th-straight season at the Plantes Ferry Regional Park in Spokane, Washington on Saturday, November 19 at a time to be determined later. 

"It never gets ordinary to advance to the NCAA's," said head coach Karen Boen. "It's nice to say that it's the 12^th year in a row but every year it's a different group of people so every year feels like the first time. It never gets ordinary for me and the rest of the coaching staff." 

Stonehill secured its third-straight team title scoring 57 points while Bentley University finished second (99 points) and Philadelphia University ranked third (112 points). The Skyhawks placed six of their seven runners inside the top-25 to earn All-East Region Team honors. 

"At the mile mark all seven our women came across practically in a straight line around 5:40 and I think are one-through-five pack was 11 seconds apart through the finish line so are strength in our depth really showed today," said Boen. 

Senior tri-captain Maura Ferrarini (Springfield, Mass./Cathedral) paced the Skyhawks top-seven who finished just 39.6 seconds apart on the six-kilometer course from each other with an eighth place finish in a time of 23:12 to earn her first-career All-East Region Team honors. 

"Maura has just had a spectacular year for us, she is really coming into her own and has over come so much that it really means a lot to her and she isn't taking anything for granted," said Boen. "I am just really thrilled for her and what she has accomplished so far this season." 

Sophomore Sarah Biggers (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y./Lakeland) placed 10^th overall in 23:17.5 closely followed by teammate junior tri-captain Kristen Veit (Easthampton, Mass./Holyoke Catholic) in 12^th place in a time of 23:20.5. 

Chelsea Bishop (Suffield, Conn./Suffield) and senior tri-captain Jill Alves (Whitman, Mass./Whitman-Hanson Regional) followed in succession after Veit in 13^th and 14^th place running times of 23:21.9 and 23:23.0, respectively. 

Alves has now earned All-East Region Team honors in all four years of her career at Stonehill placing fifth overall in 2010, eighth in 2009 and sixth in her freshman campaign. 

Junior Stephanie Wilson (Wayzata, Minn./Hopkins) rounded out the Skyhawks All-East Region honorees finishing 23^rd overall in 23 minutes and 38.2 seconds. Freshman Brianna Venturo (Taunton, Mass./Coyle & Cassidy) rounded out Stonehill's top-seven placing 26^th with a time of 23:51.6. 

The Stonehill College women's team will be joined by the men's squad, who turned in a second place team finish earlier today to advance to nationals for the ninth-straight season, at the NCAA Division II Championship on Saturday, November 19. 

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