STAC MEN, WOMEN SWEEP DOMINICAN INVITATIONAL
For the first time in more than a decade, STAC’s men’s and women’s cross country teams swept the team championships in the same meet, running away from the competition in the Dominican Invitational. The event, hosted by Dominican College, was held Monday, October 9 at Tallman Mountain State Park in Sparkill.
The Spartan men spread-eagled the five-team field, grabbing the first five places and seven of the top eight. STAC posted a shutout with a score of 15 points – the lowest total possible in cross country. The University of Bridgeport was a distant second with 70 points, followed by Post (Waterbury, Conn.) with 80, host Dominican (87), and Queens College, which fielded an incomplete team.
As they have done all season, sophomore Elmer Eckert and freshman Brad McNiff blazed the trail for the St. Thomas harriers. Competing over a hilly course measured at 5-miles-plus, Eckert breasted the finishing tape in 30 minutes, 7 seconds for a 45-yard victory margin over McNiff, who clocked 30:17.
The two Spartans were quickly followed across the line by a procession of Maroon and Gold, as freshman Aidan Hearn (31:00), sophomore Drew Gangemi (31:03), and senior Anthony Hilliard (31:59) completed the STAC whitewash. STAC just missed a “clean sweep” of the top seven places, with sophomores Andrew Spanos (32:54) and Rafael Ortiz (33:08) claiming seventh and eighth place, respectively.
Meanwhile, the Lady Spartans registered their finest team showing of the campaign, blitzing the six-team field with a low score of 48 points. Post edged Caldwell (N.J.) for second, 71 to 72, followed by host Dominican (88), Bridgeport and Queens, both of which fielded incomplete teams.
Freshman Ashley Toscano passed senior teammate Laura Koch in the final 200 meters to secure a strong third-place finish, followed by Koch in fourth. Toscano – who has been the Lady Spartans’ top runner in all five meets thus far – completed the 5K (3.1-mile) course in 23:16, three ticks of the clock ahead of Koch.
All five of STAC’s scorers were integral to the team triumph, and important backup points were provided by freshman Amanda Szorentini, ninth in 25:07; senior Kelly Bauer, 11th in 26:15; and junior Samara Vega, 21st in 28:32.
The STAC harriers hope to parlay the momentum of their twin victories into a strong performance at their next meet, the East Coast Conference championships on October 22 at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx.