Jaspers Race Through the Rain at Fordham Fiasco
RIVERDALE, N.Y. - The weather wreaked havoc on the Fordham Fiasco on Saturday morning. Heavy rains and wind before and during the meet turned the Van Cortlandt Park course into a muddy mess. Regardless, the race went on as scheduled with a handful of members of the Manhattan College cross country team competing.
Manhattan's entries were, for the most part, limited to younger athletes and those who didn't compete in last weekend's Stony Brook Season Opener. As a result, only Alyssa Windle (Redlands, Calif.) contested the women's race. Windle finished 30th overall, posting a time of 21:42.41 over 5000 meters.
Six Jaspers were entered in the 8000-meter men's race. Nathan Kotch (Tappan, N.Y.) was Manhattan's top finisher, placing 28th in 28:25.37. Kevin O'Brien (Attleboro, Mass.) took 31st in 28:50.68, while Josh Perez (Marlton, N.J.) secured 32nd place (29:20.16). Chris Laucella (Huntington Station, N.Y.) and Joe Cole (Mansfield, Mass.) crossed the line together. Laucella finished 33rd (29:44.53) and Cole was 34th (29:44.97). Billy Wilkens (Kenmore, Wash.) completed the course in 30:47.18, good for 37th place.
With six runners finishing the race, Manhattan qualified for a team score. The Jaspers ranked fifth in the Division I team standings with 158 points. Yale had six of the top seven finishers and collected 18 team points.
The entire team will be back in action next Saturday at the Wolfie Invitational from Stony Brook University, which gets underway at 10:30 a.m.
