Sophomores Gavin Casella and Courtney O'Hara were the top finishers for the Roadrunner Men's and Women's Cross Country teams Saturday, leading their teams to respective 8th place showings in the NJCAA Division III National Championship Meet at Pole GreenPark in Richmond, VA.
In the men's race, Casella, Branden Lachowicz, C.J. Gilmore, and Evan Bongard were the top RCSJ finishers as Roadrunners place 8th overall in the NJCAA D III Men's Cross Country Championships in Richmond, VA Saturday.
Casella a sophomore, placed 43rd overall with a time of 29 minutes, 32.1 seconds over the 8 K Pole Green Park in Richmond. He was followed by teammates Lachowicz (50tth), Gilmore (53rd) and Bongard (55th). Rounding out the Roadrunners' top five was freshman Walker Osborne (61st).
The Roadrunners place 8th overall in the team standings with 243 points. The College of DuPage emerged as the D III team champion with 44 points followed by Harper College and Joiliet Junior College.
See men's race results:
https://blueridgetiming.live/meets/41820/events/xc/1519474
In the Women's race, Courtney O'Hara emerged as RCSJ's top finisher with a 22nd place effort in 21:30.50. She was followed by teammates Gabrielle Szwed (60th), Grace Wahl (68th, Francesca Maccarone (84th) and Georgia Lorenzetti (88th).
See women's race results:
https://blueridgetiming.live/meets/41820/events/xc/1519477
Meet Preview
An air of excitement surrounds the Roadrunner Men's and Women's Cross Country teams as they prep for Saturday's NJCAA Division III National Championship Meet Saturday at Pole Green Park in Richmond, VA.
The Runners captured both the Region 19 men's and women's titles on Oct. 28h for the second straight season and for the third time since 2007 --- and they are looking for more glory heading into the big stage.
The men's and women's teams produced 3 All-Region performers. The race also served as the Garden State Athletic Conference championships, with the Roadrunners earning 5 All-GSAC performances as well as both team titles.
The women's team was led by Courtney O'Hara with the highest finish of the day in 4th place. Courtney earned All-Region and All-GSAC for the second year in a row.
The men's team had 2 All-Region award winners and 3 All-GSAC award winners en-route to the team titles like the women. Leading the flock for the Roadrunners was freshman Evan Bongard with his All-Region/All-GSAC 2nd place finish. Next up was sophomore Branden Lachowicz in 7th place to also earn both All-Region/All-GSAC.
"The team exceeded their expectations and all ran amazing times despite some confusion on the course last week," noted Coach Ryan Hughes. "We're peaking at the right time and hopefully we will see our runners reach top 5 finishes in their meets."
See below for the Roadrunner Men's and Women's Roster and the schedule of all Division I through Division III races. Check back for meet results.
Roadrunner Men's Cross Country Roster
Evan Bongard
Branden Lachowicz
C.J. Gilmore
Sean Gallo
Walker Osborne
Gary Schwegel
Gavin Casella
Michael Thomas
Kevin Profico
Roadrunner Women's Cross Country Roster
Courtney O'Hara
Madison O'Donnell
Gabriella Szwed
Grace Wahl
Georgia Lorenzetti
Francesca Maccarone
Check back for championship meet results.
NJCAA Cross Country Championships
Pole Green Park
Richmond, VA
Saturday, November 9, 2024
Complete Schedule -- All Divisions
NJCAA Cross Country Championships
9:10 AM National Anthem
9:15 AM First Call Division II Women
9:30 AM Division II Women Race
10:15 AM First Call Division II Men
10:30 AM Division II Men Race
11:45 AM First Call Division III Women
12:00 PM Division III Women Race
12:45 PM First Call Division III Men
1:00 PM Division III Men Race
2:15 PM First Call Division I Women
2:30 PM Division I Women Race
3:15 PM First Call Division I Men
3:30 PM Division I Men Race
USTFCCA NJCAA Cross Country Division III National Rankings
RCSJ Men -- #10
NJCAA Cross Country Championships Schedule
https://www.njcaa.org/sports/mxc/2024-25/div1/national_championship/schedule