Men's Cross Country finish season with 11th place at USCAA Nationals
Virginia Beach, VA - The Vermont Tech Men's cross country team competed at the USCAA National Cross Country Championships held at the Military Aviation Museum in Virginia Beach.
The Knights were led by Sohpomore Tyler Dunham (Morrisville, VT) who finished the 8Km race 48th in 29:35. Coach Dunkle reported "Tyler's race was much improved from last year by 10 places and about a minute. While it was not a breakthrough race, Tyler ran well and placed well."
During the race, the wind was a steady 20-30 mph and the course was on the runway, which does not give any shelter from the wind. "Even so I was proud of how Tyler and the rest of his team ran. 11th place finish is the best finish by a VTC Men's team. With the team all returning next year and some new freshman coming in this fall we are excited to continue that march toward a National title." reported Coach Dunkle after the meet.
Following Tyler was Matt Kelly (Fort Kent, ME) in 59th with a time of 32:25. "Matt is one of the most steady people I know." said Coach Dunkle, "He is always there doing what needs to be done." Kelly Matt was followed by Matt Stretton (Chester, VT) who finished 67th in 34:09. "Matt ran his best race of the year " said Dunkle, " He has steadily improved his running and his times have dropped. Matt started running with the team in August. I am looking forward to having him be a strong part of our team next season" Following Matt was Kevin Kresock (Randolph, VT) who finished 73rd in 34:57. According to coach Dunkle "Kevin is one of those people who adds a lot to the team just by being a part of it. He works hard and races well. His times have improved a lot during the season. I am glad I have another season with Kevin on our team." Rounding out the top 5 for Vermont Tech was Jonathan Puffer (Groton, VT) who finished 76th in 35:28. " We've been fortunate to have Jon run with us as a strong 5th place runner." said coach Dunkle. "He has helped the team accomplish a lot with a surprising 2nd place finish at YSCC Conference Championships, as well as for our teams best showing at Nationals, Jon has been there to run hard and finish well."
The team is looking forward to a few weeks off before many of them continue training for the track season, as well as off-season training for cross country next year.
