NAC to host men’s cross country championship this weekend
WATERVILLE, Maine – The North Atlantic Conference will crown a men’s cross country champion for the 2022 season at Saturday’s 2022 NAC Championship, hosted by SUNY Canton.
The 8000m race will be held on the SUNY Canton Cross Country Trails starting at 11:00 a.m., followed by the women’s 6000m race at noon.
SUNY Cobleskill will be trying to win a second-straight NAC men’s cross country crown at the 2022 championship. Sophomore Nick Logan, who has led the Fighting Tigers through much of the season, finished third at last year’s championship and will be vying for the individual championship this time around. SUNY Delhi senior Seth Bywater will also be challenging for the individual title, after placing second in 2021.
SUNY Delhi was the coaches’ pick to win the 2022 NAC Men’s Cross Country Championship, in pre-championship voting conducted among the conference’s coaches. The Broncos tallied 85 points in the voting, including five first-place votes. SUNY Cobleskill finished second in the voting, followed by Maine Maritime Academy.
The complete poll, along with pre-championship capsules on each of the participating teams, is below:
SUNY Delhi – 85 points (5 first-place votes)
Head Coach: Zach Brown
SUNY Delhi returns six runners from its 2021 NAC Championship squad, led by second-place finisher Seth Bywater (27:42.7)… John Amenta (sixth) and Aidan Cutting (seventh) were also top-10 finishers a year ago… Amenta finished fourth at the Vassar event with a time of 19:34 at the 6000m distance, and logged a 26:46 at the 8000m distance at the Yellowjacket XC Invite.
SUNY Cobleskill – 82 points (2 first-place votes)
Head Coach: Mitchell J. Tomaszkiewicz
Nick Logan, who finished third overall at the 2021 NAC Championship, is back to pace the Fighting Tigers in 2022… he took second place at the Oneonta Airfield Invitational… Jack Gemmett has claimed NAC Men’s Cross Country Rookie of the Week honors four times this season… Will Seamons took fourth-place honors at the Castleton Invitational, and was fifth at the Steven A. Warde Invite.
Maine Maritime Academy – 81 points (1 first-place vote)
Head Coach: OJ Logue
Maine Maritime men’s cross country will bring six runners to the 2022 NAC meet who competed in the 2021 event, led by Ben Butterfield (15th)… the Mariners won the Western New England University Invitational with four runners among the top 10, and also won the UMaine-Presque Isle Invitational… Maine Maritime finished fifth at the Maine State Championship – best finish among NAC schools in the event.
UMaine-Farmington – 59 points
Head Coach: Sean Cabaniss
UMaine-Farmington returns six runners from the squad that competed at the 2021 NAC Championship race, and the Beavers will be seeking to improve upon last year’s third-place finish… UMF took first place at the UMaine-Augusta meet on Sept. 11 with six of the top nine finishers… at the Bowdoin College Invitational, Justin Castaldo raced to a 27:07.8 time, good for seventh-fastest time in school history… at the Maine State Championship at Husson, the Beavers broke the program's all-time record with a five-man average time of 27:38…. UMaine-Farmington also finished first at the St. Joseph’s College of Maine Runnin' Monk Invitational, including a second-place finish by Castaldo, a third-place finish from Covy Dufort, and a sixth-place finish from Jimmy Reel.
Husson University – 58 points (2 first-place votes)
Head Coach: Kate Goupee
David Hileman (22nd) and Erik LoSacco (24th) are Husson’s top returning runners from the 2021 NAC Men’s Cross Country Championship… both runners ran sub-28:00 times at the Westfield State James Earley Invitational.
SUNY Poly – 54 points
Head Coach: Jordon Hoffman
SUNY Poly returns seven runners from its 2021 squad… Second Team All-NAC performer Garrett Jones (12th) and Spencer Daley (16th) were both among the top-20 at the 2021 NAC meet… SUNY Poly won the Wildcat Short Course Invitational, and finished second at the SUNY Canton event, the SUNY Poly Wildcat Classic, and the Cazenovia event.
Thomas College – 44 points
Head Coach: Alanna McDonough
Jarrod Hooper, who placed eighth a the 2021 NAC meet, will be back on the course for Thomas this Saturday… he will lead a group of five Terriers who competed in the 2021 NAC Championship… the Terriers finished second in both the UMPI Invitational and the UMaine-Augusta Invitational, with Hooper winning both races… Hooper placed 14th at a Pre-Regional race hosted at Bowdoin College, posting a time of 26:36.
Northern Vermont-Lyndon – 31 points
Head Coach: Nick Roosa
Senior Andrew Grautski, freshman Nathan Moore, and sophomore Dale Ostermann have been the Hornets' top runners this fall… at the Keene State Invitational, Grautski set a new personal best, breaking 30 minutes to finish in 29:56… Moore has also improved steadily and set a personal best of 32:53.55 at Keene… Ostermann, also in his first competitive season, ran a personal best time of 33:48.2 in his last outing at the SUNY Canton Kangaroo Invitational… Grautski finished 62nd overall, 53rd scoring, at the 2021 NAC meet.
SUNY Canton – 29 points
Head Coach: John Kennedy
SUNY Canton will be looking to improve upon last season’s 10th-place finish at the 2021 NAC meet… the Roos return five runners from last season, led by senior Ryan Duester (61st in 2021, 34:38)… thus far in 2022, Canton’s best finish was at its season-opening meet at the Castleton Invitational, where the Roos finished in third place out of five teams… junior Brogan LaRose has been the top team finisher in four races, while Duester led the squad in the other race.
UMaine-Presque Isle – 27 points
Head Coach: Chris Smith
The UMPI Owls are led by Dylan Marerro, who finished 10th at the 2019 NAC Championship… Marerro posted a season-best time of 28:05.3 in the Maine State Championship 8K race this season… fellow runners Stephen Grierson (28:45.1) and first year Dyer Westley (29:23.8) also ran their season bests at the Maine State Championships… UMPI will look to continue its improvement, as it has throughout the year.