Cross Country places first at Jim Jellison
By Taylor Kimmell
Sports Editor
The Framingham State men’s and women’s cross country teams competed at the Jim Jellison Invitational at Fitchburg State Oct. 3. Junior Vincent Gauthier said the course at Fitchburg is historically tough, with its two laps over a brutal hill, as well as a soft-grounded and, due to the weather, muddy field. Gauthier said every runner suffered equally with the course, but “having had a race under my belt on this course already from my freshman year MASCAC Championship, I had these expectations about the course.” Head Coach Mark Johnson said, “Going into this race, we labeled this course to the team as a ‘true cross country course’. The course itself was made up of rolling hills, thick grass, trails, and several sections of relatively deep, slick mud; so that all added to the challenge for the team.” Both teams placed first in the meet. The women’s team scored 45 points, a solid 11 points ahead of Fitchburg State, which placed second. The men’s team tied for first place, scoring 51 points alongside Mass. Maritime. Senior Kate Buban was the top finisher for the women's team, placing 3rd overall with a time of 20:52.5 in the 5K. Buban said during the race, she found the downhills and flat stretches to be points of strength. “My mentality is to do my best for the day. I run six days a week, which helps me stay accountable,” she added. Freshman Sydney Youde was next to cross the finish line, coming in less than a minute after Buban at 21:42.1 and scoring 4th place overall. She said this was “definitely one of the tougher courses I've run this season. There were a decent amount of smaller, rolling hills throughout the course, which I love. Hills are generally a strength of mine. There was a pretty large, muddy hill during the race which was more of a challenge than I anticipated. On a similar topic, the course had some pretty muddy spots which is always a struggle.” Her performance at the meet earned Youde recognition as MASCAC’s rookie of the week Oct. 6. Youde said she was thrilled to receive the honor. “It really helped remind me to be proud of what I've already done. It's easy to forget how far I've already come when I'm focused on future goals, but receiving this award made me take a step back and be proud of myself.” At 22:23.6, junior Grace Avery finished her race, placing 8th overall. Coming in 12th overall was Rams’ freshman Caprial Dibartolomeo, whose finishing time was 23:09.5. In 18th place, and rounding out Framingham’s top five runners, was freshman Abigail Woodbury. Her time was 25:29.3. Senior Justinne Quinanola came in at 26:53.6, earning her a 22nd place finish. The Rams’ final three finishers were senior Norah Russell, who placed 27th overall with a time of 29:36.9, sophomore Ellen Child, who placed 31st with a time of 30:35.4, and sophomore Mia McCluskey, who placed 38th with a time of 32:33.6. Junior Aaron Corlette was the top finisher for the men’s team, placing 4th overall in the 8K with a time of 29:29.5. Corlette said his mindset coming into races is similar to his mindset during practice. “I picture and feel the previous race and try to improve, but most importantly, I treat practice like I’m preparing for a meet. I hold myself to high expectations so I can be a good example to my team and coaches, even though I’m not the loudest.” Gauthier came in a little over a minute after Corlette at 30:39.8, placing 5th overall. He said, “I knew on Saturday that my main goal was to place well, and that to do that, I needed to conserve as much as possible in the first half of the race and to keep time-anxieties completely absent from my thought process. “I think I did that well, and I think the team took this advice of mine to heart, too. We saw a lot of guys able to pick off even just one more body in the final stretch of the race. We all raced for points, and the result was our 2nd all-time Men's Cross Country program invitational win in a competitive field. I'm glad to have participated in both,” he added. Freshman Joseph Lawson was the Rams’ next runner to cross the finish line, placing 8th with a time of 31:38.1. FSU’s next finisher was sophomore Jeremy Gale, who came in at 32:51.4 and placed 15th. Rounding out the Rams’ top five was freshman Jameson Miranda at 33:41.6, ranking him 20th overall. Framingham’s final runner was senior Ayden Giombetti, who placed 22nd with a time of 33:52.2. Johnson said, “We have a dedicated group on this team. From senior to freshman, everyone has been showing up day to day. “Our younger runners are seeing the hard work that our upperclassmen have been putting in on the daily, and it’s been great to watch this team bond and grow together, as the season has gone on. As we keep pushing to build the program, I hope to see our younger athletes continue putting in the work to better themselves both on the roads, as well as in the classroom, and ‘trusting the process’,” he added. Buban said as a senior, she is feeling “bittersweet about it being my last season. I’m so glad I’ve had the experience running collegiately and getting to see all the different campuses and courses. I wouldn't change the experience for anything.” The Rams travel to Westfield State to compete in the James Earley Invitational this Saturday, Oct. 10. Gauthier said, “This Saturday we're at Westfield State to race on the fastest XC course in the state: Stanley Park. With a couple of other conference teams we haven't had a chance to really duke it out with yet, I think we'll be truly establishing our placement in the MASCAC. “I think we can achieve a top 3 at the MASCAC championship this year: we've already beaten one of our main rivals twice - Fitchburg - and our Saturday win included a lot of conference teams,” he added. Johnson said, “It was fun taking in the energy from both teams after this past weekend's race at the 1st annual Jim Jellison Invitational. It was our second invitational win on both sides in the last 12 years, so I am super proud of the team. It really has been a great year across the board, so here’s to finishing on a strong note!” Youde said, “I am super excited and hopeful for our conference championship this year. I am so proud of my teammates and all the work we've put in so far. I think we are going to do really well at the championships.” Corlette said his main goal is to “finish top 10 in the conference and continue the streak. … The team goal is to finish top 3 and prove why we shouldn’t have been ranked 5th at the start of the season.”
