Fitchburg State Races In NCAA Division III Regional

Men finish 26th overall paced by Ouellette; Women earn 37th place led by Mallozzi

The men’s team turned in the best finish of the afternoon, placing 26th overall and third in the MASCAC, while the women placed 37th out of the 60 schools that competed.

The Fitchburg State women’s squad made a huge improvement from its previous meet at Westfield State, posting a team average of 25:43 compared to its 26:20 time a month ago. In addition, the Falcons were over a minute faster than last year’s pace at 26:59.

All seven runners posted personal bests with freshman Erica Mallozzi (Gardner, Mass./Gardner) leading the way at 25:03. Senior Chenice Branquinho (E. Freetown, Mass./Old Colony) notched a time of 25:05, while sophomore Jenae Harrison (Sioux Falls, S.D./Washington), sophomore Braila Roy (Hyannis, Mass./Barnstable) and graduate Linda Fortunato (Feeding Hills, Mass./Agawam) collected efforts of 26:05, 26:10 and 26:13 respectively. Junior Samantha Wilkinson (Wakefield, Mass./Wakefield) and freshman Elizabeth Ward (Ashby, Mass./North Middlesex) added times of 26:16 and 26:29 to round out the afternoon.

The men were also solid as sophomore Eric Ouellette (Ashburnham, Mass./Oakmont) collected a third place MASCAC finish at 26:57. Senior Will Lary (Winchendon, Mass./Murdock) finished second on the squad with a mark of 27:29, while sophomore Brandon Davis (Fitchburg, Mass./Fitchburg), classmate Jim Quinlan (N. Andover, Mass./N. Andover) and Dan Drescher (Saugus, Mass./Saugus) added times of 28:33, 28:39 and 28:40. Senior Michael Grasela (New Bedford, Mass./New Bedford) and freshman Tim Allen (Methuen, Mass./Central Catholic) capped the top seven with times of 28:47 and 28:51. finished 34th overall with 950 points, while the women placed 40th with 1,061 points on the afternoon.

The Fitchburg State men’s and women’s cross-country teams conclude their 2012 campaigns this afternoon.