Fitchburg State Battles At Alliance Championships

Spano cracks Alliance top 20 with 18th place finish

KEENE, N.H. (October 31, 2009) - The Fitchburg State cross country team battled at the Alliance Cross Country Championships hosted by Keene State College this afternoon.

The Alliance Championships is a combination between Little East Conference schools and MASCAC Conference schools. The Falcons men's team placed fifth overall out of 12 teams competing, while the women finished tenth overall.

On the men's side, junior Matt Spano (Gardner, Mass./Gardner) paced Fitchburg State for the second straight week with the Falcons' top finish. After earning All-Conference honors at the MASCAC Championships last week, Spano was just as strong, finishing 18th out of 155 participants with a total time of 27:43.

Sophomore Chris Kibler (Bath, Maine/Morse) followed Spano's top performance with a solid showing, finishing 23rd overall with a time of 27:46, while senior Kyle Schaeffer (Hudson, Mass./Hudson) followed in 37th place with a time of 28:27. Senior Tim Wood (Holden, Mass./Wachusett Regional) finished fourth on the Falcons squad with a time of 28:38, while freshman Pat Lucas (Attleboro, Mass./Bishop Feehan) rounded out the Fitchburg State scorers with a time of 29:11.

For the women, freshman Emily Lane (Clinton, Conn./The Morgan School) led Fitchburg State, recording the Falcons best finish of the day. The rookie runner has shined for the Falcons this year, topping it off with a 40th place finish (21:53) in this afternoon's race. Senior Linda Fortunato (Feeding Hills, Mass./Agawam) followed Lane into the chute with a time of 21:56 for the Falcons 1-2 punch.

Senior Stephanie Jarvis (Hopedale, Mass./Hopedale) and sophomore Katelyn Page (Beverly, Mass./Beverly) aided Fitchburg State with times of 22:52 and 22:59 respectively, while senior Francesca Boggs (Swampscott, Mass./Learning Prep) cracked the Falcons top five with a time of 23:35

The Fitchburg State men's and women's cross country teams will be back in action next weekend as it travels to the ECAC Championships on Saturday.