Cross Country

Manchester, N.H. (September 12) -- At a rainy 28th Annual Shacklette Invitational on Saturday morning at Saint Anselm College, both the Saint Anselm men's and women's cross country team posted fourth-place finishes.

The top women's finisher for Saint Anselm was senior Jessica Marzik (Shelton, Conn.), who covered the five-kilometer course in a time of 20:21 and led the race for much of the way. The top 10 were all separated by under one minute, including just 22 seconds separating the winner from sixth place. Also finishing in the top 10 for Saint Anselm was senior Jessica St. Laurent (Huntington, Miss.) in eighth place in a time of 20:44. Sophomore Bianca Ciuffredo (Worcester, Mass.) finished just outside the top 10 in 11th at 20:58. Rounding out the scoring for Saint Anselm was senior Karen Clark in 25th place in 21:58, followed by senior Kathleen D'Orso (Orange, Conn.) in 29th place in a time of 22:25.

Claiming the women's team title by a one-point margin was the College of Saint Rose with 53 points. The Golden Knights earned the one-point win over Bentley University in the closest Shacklette finish in the 28-year history of the event.

Capturing first place overall in the women's race was Melissa Bredice of the College of Saint Rose, who improved on a fourth-place finish from a year ago. Bredice crossed the line in a time of 20:02. 

Top 10 Women's Finishers
1. Melissa Bredice, Saint Rose - 20:02
2. Lauren Lesniak, Bentley - 20:09
3. Rachel Graham, Bentley - 20:10
4. Katie Meagher, Merrimack      - 20:16
5. Jessica Marzik, Saint Anselm - 20:21
6. Emma Lundberg, Southern N.H. - 20:24
7. Julie Binney, Merrimack - 20:31
8. Jessica St. Laurent, Saint Anselm - 20:44
9. Kaitlyn DiBello, Saint Rose - 20:51
10. Jennifer Richard, Merrimack - 20:54 

Women's Team Results
1. Saint Rose - 53
2. Bentley - 54
3. Merrimack - 63
4. Saint Anselm - 76
5. Southern N.H. - 122
6. Assumption - 140
7. Franklin Pierce - 211