Four Jumbos Garner All-Region Honors - Team 8th - Faller to Nationals

(11/14/2009) See more Photos     Full Results

This Saturday the TUXC squad ventured north to Cumberland, ME where the University of Southern Maine played host to the DIII New England Cross Country Championships. Coming off two great performances at the NESCAC and ECAC Championships, this years team sat in great position to fight for one of the 4-5 berths to the National Championships. In more ways than one, this Saturday turned out to be somewhat of a rollercoaster ride for the Jumbo XC team.

The Jumbos drew box #1 of 49 for a starting position and made the most of it. All seven Jumbos got off the line well and put themselves in ideal position. Senior Jesse Faller went straight to the front backed by junior Jeff Ragazzini and freshman Kyle Marks. Just behind them was fellow freshman Matt Rand who was still out inside the top 30. A few seconds back on these four were junior Chris Brunnquell, senior Nick Welch, and sophomore Connor Rose who got out a bit more conservatively in the mid 80’s.

However, it didn’t take long to see that not all was right with everyone. After 1200m, Welch dropped back into the 100’s as the hamstring injury that kept him out for the bulk of the season flared up. Throughout the rest of the race, Welch fought tenaciously but lacked the ability to put together a full, powerful stride. Ultimately, the ‘rollercoaster’ hills of the Twin Brooks trails made it impossible for Welch to get his legs underneath him and move up.

Meanwhile, at the front of the race, Welchs teammates were doing everything in their power to fill the hole and lengthen the teams season by another week. The Jumbos front four of Faller, Marks, Ragazzini, and Rand were putting together fantastic races. Wire to wire, Faller was never more than a few meters out of the lead and eventually finished fourth overall with a time of 25:16. Marks and Ragazzini both spent the bulk of the 5-mile race in the twenties and kicked home for a 23rd and 29th finish respectively.

Marks followed up his NESCAC Rookie of the Year performance with his first All New England honor. He was the 2nd freshman across the line this weekend only bettered by Greg Redfield of Johnson and Wales. Ragazzini followed suit with his own first All Region honors moving up from 80th last fall to 29th this year.

Running one of the most impressive races out of a Jumbo in recent memory, Chris Brunnquell steadily moved up through the pack over the entire race. After an overall 77th place finish last fall, Brunnquell earned the final All Region spot as he battled home for 35th overall. His time of 26:20 was a lifetime best improving on his performance at the Conn College Invite earlier this fall.

One of the scariest moments of the day unraveled quickly as the Jumbos waited for their fifth man. With less than a mile left in the race, Matt Rand found himself in 40th place and was battling to move up beside teammate Chris Brunnquell. However, in the final 1000m, Rands body would quit on him as he battled down the final stretch. Rands grit and determination alone got him to the finish line as the Jumbos 7th man after giving way to almost 100 spots in the final few hundred meters. He was quickly attended to by family and medical staff and, after a nights stay at the Maine Medical Center, Rand returned to his normal, stoic self. The mere fact that he fought his way through to the finish is a testament to Rands fire and strength.

To round out the scoring five for the Jumbos, Connor Rose kicked past 15+ people in the final 200m of the race to finish 103rd overall. Rose battled through the 8k course and moved up almost 80 spots from his finish there a year ago. In the end, the team would tally 193 points and finish in 8th place overall. It was a bittersweet day for the Jumbos who went into the meet eyeing a top-4 finish. Ultimately, the 8th place finish was not what the team was looking for, but it is difficult to stay too disappointed when the team posted four All Region performances, three of which return for next falls campaign.

Next weekend, senior Jesse Faller will represent Tufts University at the NCAA Championships. The race will be hosted by Baldwin Wallace College in Cleveland, OH. Last year, Faller finished 35th overall for his 2nd All American honors. As for the rest of the squad, after some well deserved rest, they will turn their attention towards assembling some great track seasons.


See more Photos   Full Results