The William and Mary men's cross country team won its 13th-straight
Colonial Athletic Association Championship Saturday morning, defending
its title streak against a stiff challenge from George Mason 25-31. The
conference meet was being held in Williamsburg at Eastern State
Hospital, for the first time since 2001. After the Tribe and the
Patriots, Northeastern was third in the standings with 78 points.
Complete Results
Tribe senior
Alex McGrath (Marlborough, N.H.)
won his first cross country title in dominating fashion, crossing the
line in 24:04.1 to finish more than 16 seconds clear of the field. His
time also broke the course record of 24:12 that was set by 1996 Olympian
Brian Hyde '96 while winning the 1993 CAA title. Redshirt-sophomore
Rad Gunzenhauser (Pittsburgh, Pa.) was third overall in 24:31.3, and redshirt-junior
Josh Hardin (Sterling, Va.) gave the Tribe three of the top-four with his fourth-place 24:32.2.
After GMU pushed across four to make things interesting, the Tribe scored the next two finishers to seal the win. Grad student
Joe LoRusso (Oak Hill, Va.) earned his first career all-conference nod with an eighth-place finish in 24:47.5, and redshirt-sophomore
Joshua Mercado (Citrus Heights, Calif.) completed the scoring in 25:15.2 for ninth. A pair of true freshmen rounded out the team's scoring effort, as
Ryan Gousse (Apopka, Fla.) and
Nathan Thomas (Brentwood, Tenn.) took 15th and 16th in 25:28.5 and 25:30.4, respectively.
The
win was W&M's 35th conference all-time, the third-highest total in
the NCAA. The Tribe's current streak of 13-straight titles is the
third-longest active streak in the nation, and ranks as the
sixth-longest streak ever in Division I.
William and Mary will host the Massey Cancer Center 5K Run next Friday,
Nov. 2. Registration is still open and donations are still being
accepted, both at
Massey5K.com.
CAA Cross Country Championships - 8K
Williamsburg, Va.
Team Standings
1. William and Mary 25
2. George Mason 31
3. Northeastern 78
4. UNCW 111
5. Hofstra 155
All-Conference Team
1. Alex McGrath (W&M) 24:04.1
2. Everett Hackett (GMU) 24:20.6
3. Rad Gunzenhauser (W&M) 24:31.3
4. Josh Hardin (W&M) 24:32.2
5. John Holt (GMU) 24:36.5
6. Robert Reynolds (GMU) 24:38.3
7. Alex Ott (GMU) 24:42.0
8. Joe LoRusso (W&M) 24:47.5
9. Joshua Mercado (W&M) 25:15.2
10. Stephen Sollowin (NU) 25:16.1
11. Sean Nestor (GMU) 25:20.1
12. Andrew McGreal (GMU) 25:21.4
Other W&M Runners
15.
Ryan Gousse 25:28.5
16.
Nathan Thomas 25:30.4
18.
David Waterman 25:36.6
22.
Jack Anderson 25:56.0
26.
Will Bass 26:20.5
28.
David Gunnerson 26:28.2
32.
Ian MacFawn 26:56.4
