Wellesley, Mass. - November 2, 2024 - The Springfield College men's cross country team raced to a fifth-place finish at the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Championships on Saturday afternoon at Nehoiden Golf Club.

MIT recorded a winning score of 25 points with nine finishers in the top 12 in the race. The Engineers have claimed all 26 conference titles in the 27-year history of the NEWMAC as the eight-kilometer championship race was hosted by Wellesley College on an ideal race day with overcast skies and temps in the 50s.  

Worcester Polytechnic Institute finished second with a score of 62 points, while Babson College placed third with 73 points. United States Coast Guard Academy trailed in fourth with 106 points and Springfield College scored 129 points to finish fifth. Wheaton College recorded 174 points to finish sixth, followed by Clark University in seventh place with 222 points. Emerson College placed eighth with 246 points while Salve Regina University rounded out the field in ninth with 260 points. 

Leading the way for Springfield was Chris Vayda (Southampton, Mass.), who posted a time of 26:15.1 to finish 24th in the race out of the 118 runners.   Close behind Vayda was the duo of Justin Jordaens (Yonkers, N.Y.) and Elijah Quinn (Holyoke, Mass.), who ran times of 26:47.7 and 26:48.9 to finish in 35th and 36th. 

Joe Wong (Brighton, Mass.) and Ricky Perruzzi (Cape Elizabeth, Maine) crossed together in 27:14.6 to finish inside the top 50, while Harry Yablon (Bellport, N.Y.) registered a 27:51.7. In his first conference championship, Andrew Petropulos (Williamstown, Mass.) notched a 27:53.3 and Jeremiah Singer (Barnstable, Mass.) recorded a 28:27.8.

Springfield was also represented in the championship by Jacob Merenda (Madison, Conn.), who ran a 28:58.5, Dan Cirella (Bethel, Conn.) who completed the course in 29:54.8, and Ty Sanges (Gloversville, N.Y.) who notched a 29:56.0

Up next for Springfield will be the NCAA Division III Mideast Regional Championships on November 16. 

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