Hawks Finish Sixth at SUNYAC Championship

BROCKPORT, NY — Junior Janet Walsh (Baldwinsville, NY) and sophomore Harry Sudwischer (Copiague, NY) were the top finishers for the SUNY New Paltz men’s and women’s cross country teams at the 2004 State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Championship.

Walsh finished 27th overall with a time of 25:14 to help lead the women’s squad to its highest finish at the conference championship since 1987. That year the Hawks finished fifth among a 10-team SUNYAC field.

Junior Kate Choromanski (Shelton, CT) was right on Walsh’s heels and finished 28th with a time of 25:20. Sophomore Alida van Almelo (Groton, NY) finished 45th with a time of 26:10. Senior Kelly Moore (Rochester, NY) and sophomore Jessica Waterbury (Mount Sinai, NY) just missed the top-50 and were 51st and 52nd respectively. Moore completed the 6,000-meter course in 26:26 while Waterbury finished in 26:27.

For the fifth consecutive year, Geneseo captured the women’s title. The Blue Knights had the top four finishers and seven of the top-10 to outdistance the field with a total of 16 points. Senior Renne Catalano of Geneseo won the race with a time of 23:09.

Sudwischer, who finished 48th, completed the men’s 8,000-meter course in 28:20 to earn the Hawks top-spot for the second time this season. Sudwischer was also the top finisher for SUNY New Paltz at the Keene State Invitational on October 2.

Senior Jason Letts (Plattsburgh, NY) was 70th overall with a time of 29:03. Junior George Correa (Central Islip, NY) was right behind Letts and finished 72nd with a time of 29:10. Senior Sam Austin (Northport,NY) crossed the finish line in 30:29 to finish in 97th place.

Junior Mike Nelson (Dix Hills, NY) rounded out the top five for SUNY New Paltz with a time of 30:38 and finished in 102nd place.

SUNY New Paltz finished 10th overall.

Geneseo won the meet for the fifth consecutive year. The Blue Knights had four of the top 10 finishers and finished with 36 points. Geneseo senior Ted Turner finished first for the second consecutive year. Turner completed the course in 25:06 to better his winning time of 25:35 in 2003.

Final Women’s Results 1) Geneseo 16, 2) Fredonia 66, 3) Brockport 90, 4) Cortland 119, 5) Plattsburgh 136, 6) SUNY New Paltz 166, 7) Oneonta 183, 8) Oswego 218, 9) Potsdam 264.

Final Men’s Results 1) Geneseo 36, 2) Cortland 59, 3) Brockport 73, 4) Plattsburgh 96, 5) Oswego 154, 6) Oneonta 179, 7) Potsdam 197, 8) Fredonia 207, 9) Buffalo State 212, 10) SUNY New Paltz 284.