Ferguson Wins Second Straight Event; SHU Leads NEC Teams at Nassaney Invitational

Saturday, September 12

Bryant University - Smithfield, R.I.

10-30 AM

Sacred Heart

5th/11 Teams

Bryant University Cross Country Invitational

Ferguson Wins Second Straight Event; SHU Leads NEC Teams at Nassaney Invitational

9/12/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – For the second week in a row, Sean Ferguson was first to cross the finish line, and in the process broke yet another Sacred Heart record at the Nassaney Invitational on Saturday.

Competing at the course that will serve host to the Northeast Conference Championships later this fall, SHU was the highest placing of the 6 NEC teams in the field of 11. With a total of 128 points, the Pioneers finished fifth and were 59 points clear of defending conference champion and sixth place Central Connecticut State. Sacred Heart's top four of Ferguson, Trevor Guerrera, Timothy Loehner, and Andrew Handfield placed first, third, fourth, and eighth amongst all of the NEC athletes in the race.

Providence, ranked 25^th nationally and third in the Northeast Region, won the event with 36 points. Brown and Boston University, who is ranked 11^th in the Northeast Region, placed second and third with 63 and 77 points, respectively. The only other team ahead of SHU was Northeastern, who accumulated 108.

"We have a long season ahead, and haven't even run a race at the 5 mile distance yet, but our men look much improved over last year thus far," said Head Coach Christian Morrison of the team effort. "We're all excited to see what the rest of the season will bring, as we get into more important races."

A week after breaking the program's 6k mark, Ferguson broke the 5k record after crossing in 14:50. He held off a group of four others who broke the 15-minute mark, including two by just one second. Ferguson sat back in about 30^th place by the end of the first mile, and was still back in the 12-15 place range at 2 miles. He then made a big move over the next half mile to move to the front of the pack, where he stayed, until holding on for the victory in the last quarter mile of the race.

"Sean ran a smart, controlled race, and made a decisive move at the right time, " Morrison said. "He beat some excellent runners today, but he definitely has more in the tank for the big races that lie ahead. I'm just happy to see him doing so well. No one deserves it more than him."

Guerrera and Loehner also went out under control, and moved up over the course of the race to earn top twenty finishes in the field of 100. Guerrera crossed 15^th with a time of 15:22, while Loehner was six seconds behind in 19^th. Handfield placed 34^th after finishing the event in 15:50.

Bryan Reilly wrapped up Sacred Heart's point total with his 59^th place finish after running the course in 16:41. Sean Kildare crossed just one second behind him to finish 60^th, while Joseph Lagner's time of 17:09 was good for 63^rd.

The Pioneers will stay in town for their next meet, as Ferguson and the team will look to continue their impressive start to the season in two weekends at the 38^th Annual Fairfield University Victor F. Leeber Cross Country Invitational on September 26.