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 Two-Time NEC Athlete of the Week John Kenworthy |
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Oct. 30, 2008
Fairfield, CT- The NEC will hold its annual cross country championship race Saturday in Holmdel, NJ. The Pioneer men and women are both expected to finish near the top of the field after impressive fall campaigns. The 2008 men’s team now features the top three runners in school history. The strength of the women’s team is its depth, fielding at least seven runners who can eclipse the 19:00 mark.
Head Coach Christian Morrison will be sending ten runners into each race. The men’s team will consist of John Kenworthy (Gloversville, NY), Luis German (Southampton, NY), Andrew Houghtalen (West Charlton, NY), Brendan Rickert (Danbury, CT), Matthew Chorney (Bristol, NH), Taylor Dressman (Brooklyn, NY), Ryan Murdoch (Salem, CT), James Curran (Hazlet, NJ), Richard Marcello (Foster, RI), and Michael Famularo (River Edge, NJ).
Kenworthy and German both broke the Sacred Heart 8k record this year, but German is the current record holder with a time of 25:09. Kenworthy is the Fairfield Invitational Individual Champion and was named All-NEC last season. German posted a top-20 finish in last year’s finale and the senior will look to earn All-NEC honors this year. Kenworthy has been named the NEC Athlete of the Week twice this season, teammate German also earned the award once. Houghtalen became the third fastest Pioneer in history this season as he posted a time of 25:39. Freshman Dressman became the fastest freshman in Sacred Heart history as he raced to the finish in 26:30 at the UAlbany Invitational. The men’s cross country team etched their names into the record book and will look to do it once again by capturing their first NEC crown.
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The women will send ten talented harriers to the NEC championship in Sarah Tencza (Succasunna, NJ), Mekenzie Krause (Bennington, VT), Dana Troy (Lebanon, CT), Samantha Troy (Lebanon, CT), Sara Pollock (Sandy Hook, CT), Brittany Llobell (West Sayville, NY), Kathleen Henry (Basking Ridge, NJ), Johanna Acosta (Hartford, CT), Theresa Campbell (Colonia, NJ), and Erin McPherson (Marlborough, MA).
Tencza has led the Pioneers all season and is looking to repeat her All-NEC performance from last year. Henry is a former All-New England and All-NEC selection as well as being a former NEC Freshman of the Year. However, it has been Kruase who has been nipping at Tencza’s heels all season. The freshman has won the NEC Freshman of the Week award and will look to back it up in the championship. The Troy sisters have had a solid sophomore season, both consistently scoring points for the Pioneers. Llobell and Pollock are two more freshmen that make this young SHU team dangerous and will make them a force to be reckoned with in the future. The Pioneers will be searching for their first championship since 2005 when they shared the NEC title with Quinnipiac.
Sacred Heart enters this weekend with not only hope, but the talent to win either crown. The NEC championship race will be hosted November 1st by Monmouth University at Holmdel Park in Holmdel, NJ.
