SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Placing three runners among the top five finishers, the Wentworth Institute of Technology cross country team captured its second straight Commonwealth Coast Conference Championship as the leopards outdistanced the field at Western New England University's cross country course.
The Leopards scored 43 points, besting second-place Endicott's 69 while Roger Williams came in third with a team score of 87. Gordon junior Damon Kilgore repeated as runner of the year as he finished first among the 89-runner field, completing the eight-kilometer course in a time of 25:46.
Junior Dan McSolla (Bridgewater, Mass.) finished second for the second straight year as he crossed the line in time of 26:08. Junior Alex Robbins (Mansfield, Mass.), who was fourth a season ago, was third this year with a time of 26:34. Classmate Patrick Hopkins (Lansdale, Pa.), who was the third-place finisher as a sophomore, finished fourth with a time of 26:53. All three earned All-CCC honors for the third consecutive season.
Senior David Ouellette (Wells, Maine) was 13th, crossing the line in a time of 28:00 while Sophomore Jonah Eisman (New York, N.Y.) finished 21st with a time of 28:5 to complete Wentworth's scoring runners.
Sophomore Josh Gangemi (Norton, Mass.) recorded a 35th-place finish with a time of 29:34, junior Zach Howey (Pitman, N.J.) placed 59th with a time of 30:45, and sophomore Nathan Ouellette (Wells, Maine) was 72nd after crossing the line in time of 32:04.
In addition to McSolla, Robbins, and Hopkins earning all-conference honors, first-year head coach Dan Roark was named the league's coach of the year.
Wentworth will compete at the NCAA New England Regionals on Nov. 12.