Five Runners Earn All-Conference Honors at NECC Championship
Men's
Results | Women's
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CHICOPEE, Mass. - Five Mitchell College student-athletes earned
all-conference honors on Saturday afternoon at the 2009 NECC Cross
Country Championships at Chicopee State Park.
The men's team finished as runner-up for the second straight
season. Junior John Hoffman, senior Eric Appleby, sophomore
Jonathan Kodsi and freshman Vernon Wilson all notched top-10
finishes to earn spots on the all-conference team. On the women's
side, junior Brittany Smyth helped the Mariners to a fourth place
finish as a team and also finished fourth overall to land on the
all-conference first team.
Lesley University men's runner Fran Cusick and women's runner
Noa Kupfer earned top individual honors, as the Lynx finished
first in both the men's 8-kilometer and women's 5-kilometer races.
Cusick finished the course in 27:43 and was named 2009 NECC Runner
of the Year. All five of his scoring teammates finished in the top
12 to pace the Lynx to a team score of 36.
Hoffman finished second overall with a time of 29:14, while
Newbury's Gabriel Nunez clocked a time of 29:27 to finish third and
earn league Rookie of the Year honors. Appleby matched his
season-best time of 30:02 to finish fourth overall. Both Hoffman
and Appleby earned spots on the all-conference first team,
repeating the feat they accomplished last season as well. Appleby
garnered all-conference accolades for the fourth time in his
Mitchell running career.
Kodsi (32:58) and Wilson (33:01) finished eighth and ninth,
respectively. The two were named to the all-conference second team
for their efforts.
For the men, following Lesley's top team score of 17 was Mitchell
(42), Daniel Webster (72), Newbury (79), and Southern Vermont (113)
to close out the five-team field.
On the women's side, Kupfer registerd a time of 20:19 en route to
claiming Runner of the Year honors. All five of Lesley's scoring
runners crossed the finish line in the top 10, powering the Lynx to
an overall score of 17. Kupfer, a freshman, also garnered Rookie of
the Year honors.
Smyth finished the 5K course in a time of 22:10, her fastest of the
season. She took home all-conference honors for the second straight
season, having finished ninth overall last season.
For the women, Lelsey earned top honors, followed by a two-way tie
for second place between Newbury and Wheelock who each tallied 70
points. Mitchell followed in fourth with 119, Southern Vermont
scored 124, and Daniel Webster rounded out the six-team field with
137.
Lesley head coach Dan Flynn earned men's coach of the year honors,
while Joe McConkey of Newbury notched coach of the year honors on
the women's side. Elms earned team sportsmanship honors on the
men's side, while Southern Vermont claimed the accolade on the
women's side.
2009 NECC Men's Cross Country Team Champion
Lesley
2009 NECC Men's Cross Country Team Runner's-Up
Mitchell
2009 NECC Men's Cross Country Runner of the
Year
Fran Cusick, Lesley (27:43)
2009 NECC Men's Cross Country Rookie of the
Year
Gabriel Nunez, Newbury (29:27)
2009 NECC Men's Cross Country First-Team All
Conference
1. Fran Cusick, Lesley
2. John Hoffman, Mitchell
3. Gabriel Nunez, Newbury
4. Eric Appleby, Mitchell
5. Chris Laplante, Daniel Webster
2009 NECC Men's Cross Country Second-Team All
Conference
6. Brian Axelrod, Lesley
7. Dillon Simmons, Lesley
8. Jonathan Kodsi, Mitchell
9. Vernon Wilson, Mitchell
10. Matthew Hunt, Lesley
2009 NECC Women's Cross Country Team Champion
Lesley
2009 NECC Women's Cross Country Team
Runner's-Up
Newbury, Wheelock
2009 NECC Women's Cross Country Runner of the
Year
Noa Kupfer, Lesley (20:19)
2009 NECC Women's Cross Country Rookie of the
Year
Noa Kupfer, Lesley (20:19)
2009 NECC Women's Cross Country First-Team All
Conference
1. Noa Kupfer, Lesley
2. Elize McKelvey, Lesley
3. Elissa May, Lesley
4. Brittany Smyth, Mitchell
5. Jasmine Cuevas, Lesley
2009 NECC Women's Cross Country Second-Team All
Conference
6. Alycia Dabrowski, Elms
7. Karen Thorvaldsen, Lesley
8. Solange Thomas, Newbury
9. Elise Huebner, Lesley
10. Katharine Needham, Wheelock
