HOLMDEL, NJ - The Iona College men's cross country team earned its 24th straight Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championship Friday afternoon at Holmdel Park. The Gaels swept the title with a perfect score of 15 as the first nine runners to cross the line wore Maroon & Gold. The win extended NCAA Division I's longest active conference championship streak.
Senior Jake Byrne crossed the line first as the individual MAAC Champion. Iona's top seven runners fished the 8k course within a second of each other. His time of 25:30.38 was two-hundredths of a second ahead of junior Otis Ubriaco (25:30.40), six-hundredths in front of rookie Gilbert Kirui (25:30.44), and 23-hundredths faster than sophomore Kieran Clements (25:30.61), the defending individual champion. Red shirt freshman Brandon Allen was fifth, just 27-hundreths of a second behind Byrne. Junior Michael O'Dowd finished sixth (25:30.72) followed by red shirt freshmen Chartt Miller (25:31.21) and Andrew Tario (25:33.83) and senior Nick Lachman (25:35.20) rounded out the top nine.
Byrne became the 13th straight Gael to win the individual title and 19th all-time. An Iona student-athlete has won the race 29 times in the 34-year history of the race. It was the Gaels eighth perfect 15 during their current stretch of 24 straight championships. The Maroon & Gold swept the top five positions in 1992, 1995, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2011 and 2013.
Canisius finished second with 66 points, with its top two scorers placing 10th and 11th at the event.
The Gaels continue their championship season in two weeks at the NCAA Northeast Regional Championship at Van Cortlandt Park. The No. 5 ranked Gaels look to earn its first regional championship since 2012.
2014 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championship
Holmdel, NJ - Holmdel Park
October 31, 2014 - 8k
Iona Finishers
Pl.) Name Yr Time
1.) Jake Byrne SR 25:30.38
2.) Otis Ubriaco JR 25:30.40
3.) Gilbert Kirui FR 25:30.44
4.) Kieran Clements SO 25:30.61
5.) Brandon Allen FR 25:30.65
6.) Mike O'Dowd JR 25:30.72
7.) Chartt Miller FR 25:31.21
8.) Andrew Tario FR 25:33.83
9.) Nick Lachman SR 25:35.20
12.) Quinn Raseman SR 25:38.90
15.) Andy Adamovics SO 25:43.48
16.) Xavier King SO 25:47.39
22.) Andrew Kowalsky SR 26:04.32
34.) Thomas McClellan SO 26:31.11
56.) Ross Wightman SO 27:02.48
77.) Kalen Sullivan FR 27:30.61
78.) Alex Shodai FR 27:31.15
125.) Gabriel DaSilva FR 28:47.22
137.) Reed Kochanek SR 29:14.08
144.) Robert Kirsty FR 30:02.35
Team Scores
Pl.) Team Score
1.) Iona College 15
2.) Canisius 66
3.) Quinnipiac 94
4.) Marist 113
5.) Rider 143
6.) Fairfield 144
7.) Monmouth 161
8.) Siena 212
9.) Manhattan 279
10.) Niagara 294
11.) Saint Peter's 365
Top 25 Finishers
Pl.) Name Yr School Time
1.) Jake Byrne SR Iona College 25:30.38
2.) Otis Ubriaco JR Iona College 25:30.40
3.) Gilbert Kirui FR Iona College 25:30.44
4.) Kieran Clements SO Iona College 25:30.61
5.) Brandon Allen FR Iona College 25:30.65
6.) Mike O'Dowd JR Iona College 25:30.72
7.) Chartt Miller FR Iona College 25:31.21
8.) Andrew Tario FR Iona College 25:33.83
9.) Nick Lachman SR Iona College 25:35.20
10.) Chad Maloy JR Canisius 25:36.75
11.) Michael Anvelt JR Canisius 25:38.32
12.) Quinn Raseman SR Iona College 25:38.90
13.) Anthony Dentino SR Rider 25:39.22
14.) Brendan Copley JR Quinnipiac 25:42.66
15.) Andy Adamovics SO Iona College 25:43.48
16.) Xavier King SO Iona College 25:47.39
17.) Khari Bowen SR Monmouth 25:48.58
18.) Jeffrey Antolos SO Canisius 25:52.39
19.) Brennan Root SO Canisius 25:53.44
20.) Johnny Lee JR Marist 25:58.74
21.) Ken Walshak SR Marist 26:03.83
22.) Andrew Kowalsky SR Iona College 26:04.32
23.) Spencer Mannion SR Quinnipiac 26:08.89
24.) Matthew Mensher JR Quinnipiac 26:14.55
25.) Sam Daly SO Fairfield 26:17.83
34.) Thomas McClellan SO Iona College 26:31.11
56.) Ross Wightman SO Iona College 27:02.48
77.) Kalen Sullivan FR Iona College 27:30.61
78.) Alex Shodai FR Iona College 27:31.15
125.) Gabriel DaSilva FR Iona College 28:47.22
137.) Reed Kochanek SR Iona College 29:14.08
144.) Robert Kirsty FR Iona College 30:02.35
