Falcons Race in Keene State Invitational

KEENE, N.H. – The Fitchburg State University cross country teams took place in the Keene State Invitational on Saturday afternoon. The women's team took seventh place, while the men finished in fourth place in the 5k race. 

The Falcons women's squad finished seventh overall, with the host Keene State taking top honors with two runners in the top five and five in the top ten. Brandies placed second with the top individual runner and the runner-up (Maddie Dolins and Kelsey Whitaker).

Nicole Gaffney led Fitchburg State in 39^th place at 21:49, while Jenae Harrison finished in 42^ndat the 21:58 mark. Elizabeth Ward was the third Falcon in at 22:27 (47^th), with Kelly McCarthy(22:53) and Jessica Mangan (23:57) closely behind in 50^th and 52^nd respectively. Rounding out the FSU top seven was Sadie Zbikowski (56-23:35) and Shawna Ryan (58-23:39). 

The Fitchburg State men's team finished fourth in the 13 team field behind nationally ranked Brandies and Keene State and DII Southern Vermont. Brandies took top honors with the individual winner of the race and the runner-up (Jarret Harrigan and Ryan Stender).

Rookie runner Brian Amaral once again led the Falcons with an 8th place finish at 27:22 time over the five mile course. Jake Hastings continued his strong running as a freshman placing 13th at 28:02 followed closely by Matthew Cuomo in 15th in 28:18. 

Rounding out the FSU top seven were Sean Beverly 30:09 (35^th), Michael Martin in 40^th (30:17),Joseph Little in 41^st at the 30:21 mark, and Alex Napolitan crossing the line at 30:39 (44^th).

Both squads return to action next Saturday, October 11 as they travel to Westfield State University. First race scheduled for 10:00 am.