The Stony Brook men’s and women’s cross country teams had strong performances in the America East Cross Country Championships at the Hard’ack Recreation Area in St. Albans, Vermont on Oct. 28. The men won their second straight America East championship while the women finished third.
“Today was a complete team performance by the men,” head coach Andy Ronan said in a press release. “They took the challenge offered by the course, the wind, and by a very good UMass Lowell team. The men really competed for each other and showed great maturity in the way they handled themselves throughout the race.”
The day began with the women’s 5K race, which featured 10 Stony Brook runners. Three Seawolves finished in the top five – junior Annika Sisson finished third with a time of 17:37, followed by junior Alexandria Ortega in fourth with a time of 17:40 and senior Tiana Guevara who came in fifth with a time of 17:41. The team finished with 58 points, one shy of tying UMass Lowell for second place.
“Annika, Tiana and Ally ran very well, they were involved from the start and gave a great effort in pursuit of a top team performance,” Ronan said. “This women’s group will continue to get better and so will the cross country program.”
The men’s 8K race finished off the day’s events. The Seawolves, who had 10 runners in the race, were led by sophomore Cameron Avery, who finished second overall with a time of 24:41. Seven of the team’s runners finished in the top 15, including sophomore Vann Moffett, who finished seventh with a time of 25:01 and sophomore Kyle Kelly, who came in 12th with a time of 25:27. The team finished with 40 points, which was enough to claim the championship for the second straight year.
“They never gave up and the reward is their second championship in a row,” Ronan said. “I am very proud of this group of young men. Cameron was excellent, he is a true cross country runner that takes whatever the course and competition throws at him and then grinds his way to top performances like today.”
Both teams will travel to Buffalo, New York to take part in the NCAA Regional Championships on Friday, Nov. 10.
