Personal Bests Across the Board Power Pride at GNAC Championship

NORTHFIELD, Vt. — The Regis College men's cross country team delivered its best performance of the season on Sunday at the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Championship, hosted by Norwich University. Every member of the Pride's lineup recorded a personal best, as the team placed fifth overall with 144 points, finishing nine points ahead of Dean College. Saint Joseph's College of Maine claimed the top spot with 44 points, narrowly edging out the host Norwich University, who finished with 46. 

Brian LaPorte led the Pride with a 33rd-place finish, clocking in at 31:45.50 - a personal record by 1:13.1 which he set a last year's GNAC Championship. LaPorte also edged out his Emmanuel College competitor by four seconds to cap off another strong conference performance. 

Nathan Thomas (Medford, Mass.) was the next Pride runner to cross the line, finishing in 33:21.90, also a personal best for the rookie by just over a minute. 

Kederson Pierre (Everett, Mass.) and Pierre 'Luc' Willems (Belchertown, Mass.) each posted career-best times as well, crossing the line in 34:28.50 and 36:22.30, respectively, with Willems improving his previous mark by an impressive six minutes. 

Rounding out the lineup, Yeury Monegro (Lawrence, Mass.) capped the day with another personal best, cutting three minutes off his previous time to finish in 41:47.20. 

It was a strong collective effort for the Pride, as every runner rose to the occasion and set new personal bests, marking one of the team's most impressive performances of the year at the conference championship. The Pride also outperformed expectations from the pre-championship poll, finishing one spot higher in fifth place and placing ahead of Colby-Sawyer, who had been projected to finish above them.