University of Massachusets Athletics
UMass Cross Country Prepares For Atlantic 10 Championship Meet
October 28, 2004 | Men's Cross Country
Oct. 28, 2004
AMHERST, Mass. - The UMass men's and women's cross country teams head to Pittsburgh this weekend to compete in the Atlantic 10 Cross Country Championships meets - the first of 21 league championship contests to be held this year.
The men's cross country team, led by head coach Ken O'Brien who is in his 37th year, enters the meet ranked fourth in the conference. Junior Ryan Corbett has led the team throughout the season with three top-five finishes and earned A-10 Performer of the Week following as 21st place finish at the New England Championship (10/12) meet.
Along with Corbett, freshmen Nils Fischer and Matt Klypka and senior Matt Clark have consistently finished as the team's top-five runners. Fischer has earned Performer of the Week honors once and Rookie of the Week honors twice this season. He led the Minutmen with a second-place finish in their final regular season meet at Central Connecticut State (10/23) en route to picking both the league's Performer and Rookie honors.
Massachusetts last won the A-10 Championship meet in 1995 - its lone league title. La Salle is the favorite to take the title which would be the Explorers' fourth consecutive. The top four overall finishers from last year's field return including 2003 champion Andre Laboy of Saint Joseph's.
The women's team enters the meet ranked fifth in the A-10. Head coach Julie LaFreniere, now in her 18th season, leads a young, talented squad.
Freshman Christina Derosa has been the team's top-finisher in every meet this season with two top-five performances and another top-10 finish. At the UMass Invitational, she captured her first career race victory. The two-time A-10 Rookie of the Week honoree also finished 25th at the New England Championships leading the women's team to an 11th-place finish among 48 teams.
Seniors Alexis Anzelone and Amanda Dahlberg along with sophomore Cuisle Kierans have consistently run among the top-five for UMass this season. Both Anzelone and Dahlberg have rotated between the second and third team finishers with four top-10 marks between them. Kierans finished just behind DeRosa in three races this season and has two top-five overall finishes.
The Minutewomen have seven league titles including five consecutive from 1995 to 1999 which was their last. Richmond will look to defend its title and is led by four-time A-10 Performer of the Week Amanda Russell. Also returning from last season's All-Conference team, which consists of the top ten overall finishers, are UR teammates Nicole Kurtain (4th) and Caitlin Smyth (5th), as well as La Salle's Jenna Darcy (6th), Elizabeth Graham (7th) of Duquesne, and Saint Joseph's Colleen Flanagan (10th).
The meet will be hosted by Duquesne at Schenley Park with the women's 5,000 meter race starting at 10:00 a.m. and the men's 8,000 meter race beginning at 10:45 a.m.
