Manhattan University Athletics

RIVERDALE, N.Y. – On Friday afternoon, the Manhattan College men's and women's cross country teams played host to the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championships at Van Cortlandt Park.  Led by Mikael Rojeras's (Sala, Sweden) 15^th-place finish, the Jasper men took ninth as a team, while the Manhattan women were also ninth.

It was an unseasonably warm day, and an early-morning rain combined with steady winds helped create fast conditions.

The women ran first, competing over 6000 meters.  Milena Stoicev (Nis, Serbia), Manhattan's No. 1 runner for much of the season, was the first Jasper across the line in her first MAAC Championships.  She finished 34^th overall in 24:28.44.  Alexandra Cappello's (Scarsdale, N.Y.) time of 24:47.89 was good for 41^st place, while Elizabeth Rosenberger (Ramsey, N.J.) placed 51^st in 25:14.48.  Meghan Hayes (Brooklyn, N.Y.) took 53^rd in 25:20.71, and Katie Saroka (Blue Point, N.Y.) was 54^th in 25:25.41.  Rounding out Manhattan's top seven were Alyssa Windle (Redlands, Calif.) (60^th, 25:56.81) and Janie Turek (Mt. Sinai, N.Y.) (64^th, 26:21.52).

Manhattan collected 233 points in the team standings.  Iona had four of the top five finishers, including individual champion Kate Avery, who notched a time of 21:07.14 to win by nearly a minute.  The Gaels finished with 30 team points to secure their ninth straight conference title.

Rojeras once again proved his place among the top runners in the conference, completing the 8000-meter men's race in 26:31.69 to finish 15^th.  Lucas Bittigkoffer (Neulingen, Germany) was 35^th overall in 27:26.62, while Salim Corbin (Patterson, N.J.) took 51^st in 27:50.09.  Anthony Colasurdo (Lanoka Harbor, N.Y.) was next across the line.  He placed 58^th in 28:07.46.  Connor Clarke (Milltown, N.J.) had his best race of the season, securing 62^nd place in a time of 28:23.42.  Sean Wheat (Brielle, N.J.) (63^rd, 28:25.69) and Kevin O'Brien (Attleboro, Mass.) (66^th, 28:30.95) completed the Jaspers' top seven.

As a team, the Jaspers tallied 221 points.  Iona had a perfect team score of 15 to capture its 23^rd consecutive MAAC title.  The individual champion was the Gaels' Kieran Clements, who finished in 25:27.94.

In addition, the MAAC All-Academic Team was announced.  Cappello and Windle were honored on the women's side, while Joe Cole (Mansfield, Mass.), Tom Voorheis (Syracuse, N.Y.), O'Brien and Rojeras were named to the Men's All-Academic Team.  In order to be eligible for the MAAC All-Academic Team, student-athletes must have completed at least two semesters at their institution and boast a cumulative GPA of 3.20 or higher.