FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Courtesy of Saint Joseph's Athletics Communications
JWU's Adam Sachs, Norwich's Chapel
Guarnieri named GNAC Runners of the Year
STANDISH, Maine - Johnson & Wales University totaled 44 team points to edge Norwich University by just one point to win the 2014 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Men's Cross Country Championship on a soggy Saturday afternoon at Saint Joseph's College of Maine. It marks the Wildcats' fifth GNAC title in the last seven seasons and first since 2011.
The women's race was also a narrow one-point thriller, as Norwich received 66 points to edge runner-up and defending champion Emmanuel College, which finished with 67 points.
For the men, Johnson & Wales fielded three of the top four runners, including sophomore Adam Sachs (Ellicott City, Md.), who won the race with a 28:09 performance and was named the 2014 GNAC Men's Runner of the Year.
Saint Joseph's freshman Lucas Fisher (Strafford, N.H.), who placed sixth with a 28:45 time, claimed GNAC Rookie of the Year accolades after finishing as the top first-year runner. Johnson & Wales head coach Hollie Walton was selected as the GNAC Coach of the Year by a vote of his peers.
Saint Joseph's finished third with 67 points, Emmanuel was fourth with 85 points, and Lasell College rounded out the top-five grouping with 119 team points.
For the complete team standings, please see the results links at the top of this page.
Individually, Emmanuel junior Sean Colford (Epping, N.H.) – the 2013 GNAC champion – sprinted the last 60 yards to pass Johnson & Wales sophomore Harold Hennessey (Bolton, Conn.) at the finish line and earned runner-up honors with a 28:12 time. Wildcats sophomore Alex Melnick (Port Jervis, N.Y.) placed fourth with a 28:19 effort and Saint Joseph's sophomore Nick Shuckrow (Winslow, Maine) finished fifth after touring the 8K course in 28:35.
In the women's race, Norwich sophomore Chapel Guarnieri took first place and 2014 GNAC Runner of the Year honors with a time of 20:49, defeating Saint Joseph's senior Heather Eaton, who was the individual runner-up with a time of 20:54. Eaton's teammate and fellow senior Amber Dostie, last year's race winner, finished third in 21:02.
Emmanuel senior rookie Martina Benassi was named GNAC Rookie of the Year after finishing fourth with a time of 21:07, while University of Saint Joseph sophomore Kaneen Gomez-Hixson rounded out the top-five with a 21:31 mark.
Behind champion Norwich and runner-up Emmanuel was Simmons College in third place with 75 points, followed by Johnson & Wales with 82 points and host Saint Joseph's with 112 points.
Founded in 1995, the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 12 member institutions and over 3,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Each year, the GNAC sponsors and administers 17 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunities and community involvement.
Women's Runner of the Year - Chapel Guarnieri, Norwich
Women's Rookie of the Year - Martina Benassi, Emmanuel
Women's Coach of the Year - Tony DaRocha, Emmanuel
Men's Runner of the Year - Adam Sachs, Johnson & Wales
Men's Rookie of the Year - Lucas Fisher, Saint Joseph's (ME)
Men's Coach of the Year - Hollie Walton, Johnson & Wales
Women's Institutional Sportsmanship Award - Saint Joseph's College of Maine
Men's Institutional Sportsmanship Award - Saint Joseph's College of Maine
Women's All-Conference Team
Chapel Guarnieri (So.), Norwich
Heather Eaton (Sr.), Saint Joseph's (ME)
Amber Dostie (Sr.), Saint Joseph's (ME)
Martina Benassi (Sr.), Emmanuel
Kaneen Gomez-Hixson (So.), Saint Joseph (CT)
Kara MacLean (Jr.), Simmons
Kristen Caroselli (So.), Johnson & Wales
Haddie Lary (Fr.), Norwich
Kristen Decesare (Sr.), Johnson & Wales
Maureen Moore (So.), Anna Maria
Men's All-Conference Team
Adam Sachs (So.), Johnson & Wales
Sean Colford (Jr.), Emmanuel
Harold Hennessy (So.), Johnson & Wales
Alex Melnick (So.), Johnson & Wales
Nick Shuckrow (So.), Saint Joseph's (ME)
Lucas Fisher (Fr.), Saint Joseph's (ME)
Robert Greene (So.), Norwich
Oliver Wood (Fr.), Norwich
Jarrett Cavanaugh (Fr.), Norwich
Luke Moeckel (Sr.), Norwich
Buck Nichols (So.), Norwich
2014 GNAC Cross Country All-Sportsmanship Team
Dan Jodrey, Anna Maria
Ashley Bricault, Anna Maria
Corey Hebert, Emmanuel
Chloe Egan, Emmanuel
Adam Sachs, Johnson & Wales
Kristen DeCesare, Johnson & Wales
Tyler Schwabe, Lasell
Briana Wrubleski, Lasell
Gordon Haner, Mount Ida
Jessica Roberts, Mount Ida
Meredith Hinz, Norwich
Luke Moeckel, Norwich
Isaiah Arteaga, Rivier
Kathleen Maggio, Rivier
Bridget Saur, Saint Joseph (CT)
Joe DiSalvo, Saint Joseph's (ME)
Heather Eaton, Saint Joseph's (ME)
Caroline Coughlin, Simmons
Paulo Guedes, Suffolk
Kelly Warwick, Suffolk
– #theGNAC –