XC Looks to Make Strides
September 06, 2007
The men's and women's cross country teams look to make great strides this fall as they return a number of key runners from last season.
On the women's side, Christine Gaspar '09 will once again set the pace for the Saints, after impressive 2006 campaign in which she was the team's top performer in all seven meets. She took home the individual title at the Rivier College Invitational and the Saints Invitational, while also earning all-conference accolades after leading the Saints to a runner-up performance with her fifth place finish at the GNAC Championships.
Emily McCaffrey '08 and Cathryn Lariviere '08 are two runners that Head Coach Tony DaRocha expects to push Gaspar, as he feels they too will be among the best in the conference this fall. Last year, McCaffrey consistently finished as the team's second runner, narrowly missing out on an All-GNAC spot with a 13th place finish in the conference. Lariviere wasn't too far behind, traversing the 5k course in 22:50, good for 17th.
Other notable returning harriers include Amanda Strout '10, Anna Merrow '09 and Keelyn Blanchfield '08, all of who were consistently amongst the top seven a year ago. DaRocha also expects Kristen Impastato '08 and Samantha Scola '08 to break into the top group as well. Dana Griffin '11, Maureen Kellett '11 and Nicole DiBlasio '11 make up this year's freshman class.
For the men, T.J. Griffis '08 and Matt Hickey '08 are expected to take over the top two spots on the squad after sharing second place efforts throughout last season. Tim Flaherty '10, Joey Rugo '10 and Brian Anderson '09 will round out the scoring for the Saints. Two key additions include Doug Gillum '10, who comes out for the team after running indoor and outdoor track last year, and Ben Cleveland '11.
The Saints next meet will be on September 21st at the Rivier College Invitational.