The Lasell College women's cross country team recorded 54 points for a second place finish at the Rivier College Invitational on Friday, with two athletes finishing in the top ten. The Lasers men's team also had two finishers in the top ten in their race, and finished with 71 points in fourth place.
Kayla McKenna (Warwick, RI) led the Lasers women's team across the finish line, with her best run of the season, at 21:54. McKenna took over a minute off her previous race time (23:11) and completed the course in 3rd place.
Following in her footsteps, Meghan Missett (Lowell, MA) took nearly two minutes off her previous finishing time, and finished in 6th place in the meet for the Lasers. Missett ran an individual time of 22:23 at the Rivier Invitational. Only a freshman, Missett has already made an impression on the Lasell cross country team, finishing second overall for the Lasers in the past two meets. Missett and McKenna were also recently recognized by the GNAC as honor roll selections for their fine performances at the Smith Invitational.
Christina Lombardi (Marlborough, MA), also a freshman, finished next for Lasell with a time of 24:10, and an 11th place finish. Rounding off the top twenty were Lauren Darrah (Beverly, MA) and Ariella Harrington (Woburn, MA) who placed 18th and 19th. Lombardi, Darrah, and Harrington all ran their best meet time so far in the 2008 season.
The men's team finished in fourth place overall at the Rivier Invitational, and had 4 athletes finish in the top twenty. Chris Johnson (Gloucester, MA) continues to lead for the Lasers, finishing in the 3rd place, with a time of 30:09. Johnson has been the top finisher for the men's cross country team in every race this year so far.
Sophomore Kris McCabe (Kingston, NY) came in next for Lasell in the 8th spot, running a 31:05 meet, and junior Zach Lambert (Marlborough, MA) was close on his trail with a 12th place finish and a 31:24 run time.
Grant Vantine (Fitchburg, MA), a first year student, claimed the 20th place and was the fourth to finish for Lasell, with a 34:52 time.
The Lasers will compete again on Saturday, October 4th, at the Gordon College Invitational in Wenham, Mass.