Escobar, Gaspar Win 2nd Annual Saints Invitational :: The Men's and Women's Cross Country Teams hosted the 2nd Annual Saints Invitational meet on Friday at Franklin Park.

The Men's and Women's Cross Country Teams hosted the 2nd Annual Saints Invitational meet on Friday at Franklin Park. The event featured eight women's teams and seven men's teams competing. The Emmanuel Women's Team was victorious, winning their 3rd meet this season. The Saints were led by the first-place performance of sophomore Christine Gaspar (Attleboro, MA). Gaspar won the 5K race with a time of 21:12, outrunning 64 other competitors. Rookie junior Emily McCaffrey (East Greenwich, RI) placed 2nd for the Saints and 5th overall with a time of 21:48. Rookie senior Karis Yusavitz (Philadelphia, PA) was the 3rd finisher for the Saints and the 7th overall. Yusavitz cut over one minute off of her personal best time and posted her 2nd top-ten finish this season. Senior Dorothy Shanahan (Accord, NY) came in 4th for the Saints and 10th overall with a time of 22:22. Freshman Amanda Strout (East Longmeadow, MA) was the 5th point scorer for Emmanuel. Strout finished in 13th place overall with a time of 23:01. Another notable performance came by way of sophomore Quincy McCarthy (Winterport, ME), who captured her personal best time by 5 seconds.

The Emmanuel Men's Team finished 4th out of seven teams. The Saints were paced by the first-place finish of senior Carlos Escobar (Cambridge, MA). Escobar defeated 46 other runners with his time of 27:55 in the 5 mile event. Junior T.J. Griffis (Green Harbor, MA) placed 2nd for the Saints and 10th overall with a time of 29:14. Junior Matt Hickey (North Attleboro, MA) finished 3rd for the Saints and 18th overall, setting his personal best time by 53 seconds. Emmanuel's 4th finisher was senior Patrick Chviruk (Worcester, MA), who ran the race in 31:29. Freshman Tim Flaherty (Mattapoisett, MA) knocked 1 minute and 30 seconds off his personal best to finish 5th for the Saints. Although placing 7th for the Saints, Rustam Allakhervediyev (Kazakhstan) improved on his personal best by an amazing 3 minutes and 25 seconds. This was Emmanuel's last regular season meet this year. The Saints will now gear up for the GNAC Championship on Saturday (10/28). The results from the 2nd Annual Saints Invitational can be viewed at: http://www.coolrunning.com/results/06/ma/Oct13_Emmanu_set1.shtml

The Women's Tennis Team edged Johnson & Wales University, 5-4, on Saturday to capture a 3rd place finish in the conference standings. The Saints received singles points from freshman Lauren Donnelly (Centerville, MA) at 3rd singles, junior Cat Robinson (East Providence, RI) at 4th singles, and junior Megan Barrows (West Springfield, MA) at 5th singles. The Saints' fourth point of the day came at 1st doubles, when Donnelly and junior Anna Marie Podnecky (Bridgewater Corners, VT) defeated their opponents, 8-5. With the match tied at 4 points, the weight of the deciding match was placed on Robinson and junior Kathleen O'Shea (South Hadley, MA). Robinson and O'Shea met the challenge, fighting their way back from a 6-5 deficit to win 8-6 at 3rd doubles. The Saints improved their record to 11-2 on the season and 7-2 in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference. Emmanuel has just one non-conference match remaining in the regular season. The Saints will take on Wentworth Institute of Technology today (10/16) at Wentworth at 3:30 pm. Emmanuel received a #3 seed in the upcoming conference tournament and will host the 6th seeded Lions of Emerson College on Wednesday afternoon (10/18) in the GNAC tournament quarterfinals at 3:30 pm. The winner of Wednesday's match will face 2nd seeded Western New England College in the GNAC semifinals on Saturday.

The Women's Soccer Team rolled past Norwich University on Saturday. The Saints defeated the Cadets, 3-1, in Northfield, VT. The Emmanuel goal scorers included freshman midfielder Molly Hoyt (Spruce Head, ME), senior forward Myheka Roper (Sunderland, VT), and sophomore forward Brittany Edelson (Sumter, SC). Edelson, along with junior midfielder Erin Kelly (Springfield, MA), also recorded assists in the win. Freshman goalkeeper Meaghan Mingo (Grey, ME) made 4 saves in her 90 minutes in net. The Saints improved their record to 5-1-1 in the GNAC and 6-7-1 overall. Emmanuel will host Simmons College on Wednesday night (10/18) at 7:00 pm at the Winsor School.

The Women's Volleyball Team posted its 6th straight win on Saturday, downing Wentworth Institute of Technology in 4 games. The Saints defeated the Leopards, 30-24, 30-25, 31-33, and 30-17. Sophomore outside hitter Lindsey Parker (New Bedford, MA) led Emmanuel with 19 kills. Senior outside hitter Amy Miklus (Burton, OH) tallied 15 kills in the match, giving her a career total of 986 kills. Senior outside hitter Kendra Barry (Lakeville, MA) recorded 11 digs and 9 kills, while senior setter Beth Ferreira (Somerset, MA) dished out a match-high 40 assists. The 10-10 Saints remain undefeated in the GNAC (4-0), heading into tonight's (10/16) match at Rivier College. The Saints will play again at home on Wednesday night (10/18) at 7:00 pm, when they host the Wildcats of Johnson & Wales University.

The Men's Soccer Team was defeated by Suffolk University on Saturday, 3-1. Emmanuel's lone goal came in the 58th minute from freshman forward Dan D'Amato (Huntington, MA). D'Amato was assisted by sophomore midfielder Cameron O'Hala (Bristol, CT). The Saints played without starting goalkeepers Dan Campagna and Vedran Vukovic, who were both sidelined with injuries. Junior captain Mark Iannucci (Kingston, MA) stepped in and made 6 saves in net for Emmanuel. The Saints fell to 1-5 in the GNAC and 5-6-1 overall. Emmanuel plays tonight (10/16) at Lesley University. This game will be played at Buckingham, Browne, and Nichols at 7:30 pm. The Saints will then host the Raiders from Rivier College on Saturday (10/21) in their last regular season home game.