By BOB LEDDY RIT&FF Correspondent
10 Oct. - - A pair of veteran harriers wn their respective Varsity Division races as part of the annual Providence Recreation Dept. Columbus Day Invitational, held in summer-like conditions at Roger Williams Park.
Seniors Anna Dumais, of Burrillville, and Eric Benson, of Barrington, each crossed the finish line victorious at the end of a hilly 2,85-mile route. Dumais, a third-team All-State cross country pick last season, came through handly in 18 minutes, 58 seconds. The Eagles’ Benson hit the tape in 16:25 to win the boys’ event. Neither Dumais nor Benson found the unseasonable temperatures (in the mid-80s) particularly bothersome, though both were aware of the heat, and welcomed shady areas along the route.
“It was a little hot,’’ said Dumais, who finished second at this event last year. “”It could’ve been worse. That first mile, I went out faster than I usually do.’’ The Bronco Long Ranger beat the next-place finisher - Pilgrim’s Melanie Brunelle - by eight seconds.
“She ran a great race,’’ said Bronco coach Marty Crowley. “She ran a nice second mile.’’
Benson, the Barrington runner, helped his squad place second at last year’s JV Cross Country Championships. Caught in a distance runner’s zone, Benson said he “didn’t notice’’ the extreme temperatures. “I tried to get the distance in mid-race,’’ he said.
For the Eagle harrier, this was is first time on the course. Dumais, on the other hand was familiar with the park’s rolling terrain. The Burrillville Middle School in the Broncos’ home turf, and, for her part, Dumais likes it. “It has the right mix of [being] challenging, but not killing yourself.’’
Course Notes: The Dumais Clan was well represented in the Varsity race. Besides Anna, freshman Liz Dumais placed third (19:25), while junior Danielle finished 11th in 20:41 . . . The Broncos topped second-place Cumberland in the Varsity Division team standings: 46-66 . . .The Clippers took the boys’ Varsity scoring, 38-61, over Barrington.
GIRLS Varsity Race Team scores 1, Burrillville 46; 2, Cumberland 66; 3, Pilgrim 112; 4, Classical 121; 5, Mt. St. Charles 126; 7, Mt. Hope 134; 8, Hope 171. Individual results 1, Anna Dumais, Burr. 18:58; 2, Melanie Brunelle, Pil. 19:06; 3, Liz Dumais, Burr. 19:25; 4, Alicia Holloway, Class. 19:48; 5, Natalie Tocco, Pil. 19:52; 6, Kate Shay, Cr. East 20:03; 7, Britt Sarza, Cr. East 20:10; 8, Hannah Tavares, Cumb. 20:23; 9, Courtney Bricault, Cumb. 20:25; 10, Ester Kwara, Cumb. 20:26; 11, Danielle Dumas, Burr. 20:41; 12, Hanna Finigan, Class. 20:55; 13, Julia Lawson, Cr. East 21:15; 14, Ruby Perry, Burr. 21:18; 15, Meghan Rainville, MH 21:26. Dist. 2.85. JV Race Team scores 1, Coventry 15; 2, Cumberland 40; 3, Hope 70. Individual results 1, Amanda Terenzi, Cov. 22:55; 2, Abigail Clarkin, Cov. 23:10; 3, Allie Custodio, Cov. 23:25; 4, Tiffany Richards, Cov. 24:49; 5, Erin MacNeil, MSC 24:55; 6, Kris Shardlow, MSC 25:04; 7, Caitlyn McLoughlin, MSC 25:40; 8, Liz Daley, Cov. 25:53; 9, Florraine Lopotry, Cumb. 26:21; 10, Seraphim Le, Cumb. 27:10. Dist. 2.85. Freshman/Novice Race Team scores 1, Coventry 15; 2, Classical 48. Individual results 1, Katarina Heyden, MH; 2, Haley Dennis, Cov.; 3, Marisa Fascio, Cov.; 4, Laura Paiva, Cov.; 5, Hnnah Dogan, Cov. (No times recorded).
BOYS
Varsity Race Team scores 1, Cumberland 38; 2, Barrington 61; 3, Cr. West 86; 4, Mt. Hope 118; 5, Coventry 135; 6, Classical 149; 7, Cr. East 149; 8, Hope 190; 9, Pilgrim 230. Individual results 1, Eric Benson, Barr. 16:25; 2, Alex Southiere, Cumb. 16:29; 3, Kali Almeida, Hope 16:30.6; 4, Matt Smith, Cumb. 16:30.9; 5, Joe Zanfagna, Cr. West 16:56; 6, Jim Stanley, MH 16:58; 7, Abdullah Kaba, Cumb. 16:59; 8, Brandon Paulino, MH 17:04; 9, Marc Sefranek, Barr. 17:05; 10, Dave Molina, Class. 17:06; 11, Dave Agudelo, Cumb. 17:13; 12, Anteneh Kutenlpon, Barr. 17:17; 13, Matt Fusco, Cov. 17:27.1; 14, Sean Corliss, Cumb. 17:27.4; 15, Mel Morales, Cr. East 17:34. Dist. 2.85. JV Race Team scores 1, Barrington 25; 2, Cumberland 46; 3, Coventry 75; 4, Classical 95; 5, Hope 103. Individual results 1, Mason Robertson, Barr. 18:21; 2, Tom Sullivan, Cumb. 18:23; 3, Andy Patton, Barr. 18:29; 4, Max Mitchell, Barr. 18:51; 5, Bob Reedy, Cumb. 18:57; 6, Brian Salemi, Cumb. 19:07; 7, Jacob Anderson, Cov. 19:09; 8, Sam Reitsma, Barr. 19:11; 9, Jan Bonif, Barr. 19:27; 10, Shawn Curtin, Cumb. 19:59. Dist. 2.85. Freshman/Novice Race Team scores 1, Coventry 35; 2, Cumberland 49; 3, Barrington 53; 4, Classical 89. Individual results 1, Ethan Lesnett, Cov. 17:48; 2, Matt Fownes, Cumb. 18:00; 3, Lucas Beldsoe, Barr. 18:03; 4, Chase Lincoln, Cov. 18:58; 5, Tony Masseur, Cov. 19:00. Dist. 2.85.
