The St. Thomas Aquinas College cross country program finished their season at the NCAA East Regional in Hopkinton, NH. The men finished in a program best 10th place while the women took 9th overall.
Freshman Robert Guidicipietro was the top Spartan finisher, covering the 10K course in 33:25. He finished in 48th place. Just eleven seconds later, freshman Jonathan Gay crossed the line in 52nd place. Juinior Vincent Vazquez was the next Spartan in at 34:52. Seniors Jamer Linares, Campbell Zicchino and Ryan Gasser closed out their collegiate cross country career with times of 34:56, 35:57 and 36:02 respectively. Freshman Austin Labbe, 36:47, rounded out the STAC competitors. The men's team had one of the most successful years in program history in terms of team finishes. The recorded a program best 2nd place finish at the ECC Championship and added another program best in this race. Guidicipietro and Gay both earned All-Conference honors as freshmen. "I am very proud of what this team has accomplished. Their tireless effort has paid off and has brought the school regional recognition. While we will miss the seniors and all they have contributed, I am confident that this team will contunue to progress and will do great things going forward," said 9th year head coach Nicole Ryan.
Senior Meaghan Ventarola finshed out her final season as on of the the top finishers for the women's team. She placed 25th overall in a time of 22:57. Freshman Aida Torpey followed her lead recording a personal 6K best of 22:57 finishing in 26th place. Senior Katie O'Grady crossed the line in 24:06 which was good for 71st place. Rookie Rebecca MacLeod was next for the Spartans at 24:46. Just twenty seconds later, junior Kara Santa Teresa came through the finish followed by senior Juman Khatib at 25:45. Freshman Garce Carter, running in her first 6K, clocked a time of 27:18. The women finished tied for 9th place overall out of 28 teams. Coach Ryan remarked, "This has been another strong season for our women's program. Although having a couple of key injuries could have been a distraction, the team worked together to accomplish their goals. The seniors will be hard to replace, as they brought our program to new heights in last year's national appearance. I have great confidence that our younger runners understand what it wil take to get back there and are ready for the journey."
