Fitchburg State Hosts Jim Sheehan Memorial Meet
Men capture first place with a total of 24 points; Women earn first overall with 24 points
FITCHBURG, Mass. (September 6, 2014) – The Fitchburg State men's and women's cross country teams hosted their annual Jim Sheehan Memorial Meet at the Doyle Conservation Center in Leominster on a hot and humid afternoon. The men's squad turned in a first place finish with a score of 24 points, while the women also place first overall with 24 points.
Freshman Brian Amaral (Tewksbury, Mass.) led the pack for Fitchburg State, turning in a school course record of 28:49 to place second overall to lead the Falcons finished first overall with 24 points over the 8K course. Sophomore Matthew Cuomo (Carlisle, Mass.) grabbed third place on the afternoon with an effort of 30:20, while newcomer Jake Hastings (Phillipston, Mass.) cracked the top four with a time of 30:23.
The Falcons men's team was electric on the afternoon, grabbing five of the top nine spots of the meet. Junior Timothy Allen (Methuen, Mass.) garnered sixth place for Fitchburg State with a time of 31:43, while freshman Daniel Fournier (Winchendon, Mass.) followed in ninth place, turning in a time of 32:47. Junior Michael Martin (Gardner, Mass.) and newcomer Sean Beverly (Lunenburg, Mass.) capped the Falcons top men's runners with times of 33:22 and 34:41 respectively.
Senior Jenae Harrison (Sioux Falls, S.D.) stole the paved the way Fitchburg State women's team, posting the squads best finish of the day with second place time of 22:30 as the Falcons took home first place with a total of 24 points over the 5K layout. Freshman Nicole Gaffney (Paxton, Mass.) followed Harrison into the shoot in third place with a time of 22:32, while junior Libby Ward (Ashby, Mass.) took fifth at 22:47.
Newcomer Shawna Ryan (Hanson, Mass.) and classmate Bridget Diggins (Westhampton, Mass.) also cracked the top eight for Fitchburg State, finishing with times of 24:55 and 25:13 respectively, while sophomore Grace Morrissey (Millis, Mass.) rounded out the top Falcon efforts for the ladies in 17th place with a time of 27:16.
Both teams will be back in action in two weeks as they travel to UMass Dartmouth on Saturday, September 20th for a meet starting at 11 a.m.