Fitchburg State Captures MASCAC Championship

Falcons earn first place on men’s side; finish third on the women’s side

NORTH DARTMOUTH, Mass. (April 25, 2010) – The Fitchburg State men’s and women’s track team competed in the MASCAC/Alliance Championships this past weekend hosted by UMass Dartmouth. The Falcons men’s team captured the MASCAC Championship, edging out Westfield State by one point (217-216), while the women placed third overall with 124.5 points.

On the men’s side, the Falcons dominated the MASCAC competition, collecting several first place finishes both on the track and in the field. Sophomore Chris Kibler (Bath, Maine/Morse) led Fitchburg State with two, first place finishes and one third place honors as he captured top honor in the 1500m (3:59.83) and 5000m (15:46.46) runs. The second-year distance runner also added a third place effort in the 800m run, posting a time of 1:58.84.

Fitchburg State remained supreme in the sprinting events as a trio of Falcons collected top five honors in both the 100m and 200m events. Sophomore Mike Iasevoli (Ayer, Mass./Ayer) led the Falcons with a first place, MASCAC finish in the 100m (11.27) and a second-place showing in the 200m (22.34), while senior Devon Jennings (Brockton, Mass./Brockton) notched a second place effort in the 100m (11.32) and fifth place finish in the 200m (23.14). Junior Carlos De La Rosa (Holyoke, Mass./Holyoke) rounded out the Falcons top three in the 200m dash with a time of 22.77, while freshman Jimmy DiNuccio (Wilmington, Mass./Wilmington) capped the 100m event with a fourth place finish (11.77).

Members of the foursome also competed in the 4x100 and 4x400 relays as Fitchburg State snagged a pair of first place accolades. The 4x100 relay team of Jennings, Callahan, Iasevoli, and De La Rosa registered a time of 42.73, while 4x400 team (Jennings, Petersen, DiNuccio, De La Rosa) finished the heat in 3:23.41.

Jennings capped a career day with a solid field effort as the veteran jumper won the MASCAC and Alliance title in the long-jump. Jennings notched a distance of 6.94 meters, coming within six inches from both the school record and the NCAA Provisional National mark.

On the distance side, junior Matt Spano (Gardner, Mass./Gardner) added to the Falcons first place awards, taking top honors in the 3000m steeple chase with a time of 9:51.57, while senior Albert Wong (Merrimack, N.H./Merrimack) placed second in the 10000m run with a blazing time of 35:08.48. Senior Kyle Callahan (Stoneham, Mass./Stoneham) rounded out the Falcons top-runners with a time of 56.85 (1st) in the 400m hurdles.

In the throwing events, Fitchburg State continued to remain on top, receiving solid efforts from DiNuccio, junior Matt Muolo (Stoneham, Mass./Stoneham) and sophomore Donald Trinque (Ayer, Mass./Ayer). Muolo continues his dominance of the NCAA DIII, notching a first place/Alliance record in the discus (47.54m) and a top showing in the shot-put (14.73m). Trinque paced the Falcons javelin event with second place honor and toss of 54.20, while DiNuccio placed fifth with a throw of 52.68. Muolo rounded out the Falcons throwers with a third place finish in the javelin (54.14m).

The Fitchburg State women’s team continued to rack up the first place honors as sophomore Madeline Merchant (Gardner, Mass./Monty Tech) turned in three-top finishes. Merchant recorded a pair of first-place awards in the 100m (12.71) and 200m (26.20), before rounding out the day in the field with first place in the triple jump (11.15m) and third place in the long jump (5.14m).

Sophomore Kat Marrone (Springfield, Mass./Springfield Central) added to the mix with the top MASCAC finish of the 800m (2:24.80), while senior Linda Fortunato (Feeding Hills, Mass./Agawam) added a second-place honor in the 10000m run with a time of 43.54.80.

Senior Lindsay Suprenant (Feeding Hills, Mass./Agawam) led all Fitchburg State throwers, posting a pair of top three finishes in the hammer throw and discus. Suprenant tallied her best finish of the day in the discus with a throw of 34.12 (1st), while earning third place in the hammer with a distance of 38.50m.

Freshman Shanissa Sampson (Marlborough, Mass./Marlborough) was also strong in the field, earning first in the javelin with a heave of 37.60m, while sophomore Erin Abbott (Warwick, Mass./Pioneer Valley) and freshman Emily Lane (Clinton, Conn./The Morgan School) rounded out Fitchburg State’s field performances. The pair tied for fourth overall in the high-jump with heights of 1.54m while Abbott also turned in a second place showing in the pole vault with a height of 2.37m.

Members of the Fitchburg State track and field team will be in action next weekend they compete in the DIII New England’s on Saturday starting at 11 a.m.