POUGHKEEPSIE, NY —The State University of New York at New Paltz men's and women's cross country team(s) were in action yesterday evening for the Vassar Spring Twilight Invite hosted by Vassar College. The one-day competition featured the regular NCAA order of track events minus the 10000m. The Hawks endured a wide range temperatures with early events having heat and humidity and the final events battling high winds and a twenty degree drop in temperatures. There was a ninety-minute delay due to a thunderstorm between the 400m and the 100m dash. The women finished eleventh and the men twelfth in team scoring.
Jazmyne Daily-Simpson finished fifth in the 3000m steeplechase with a new personal best time of 12:55.35. Daily Simpson's performance currently ranks fifth on the program's all-time performance list. Daily Simpson also finished seventeenth in the 5000m run with a new personal best of 20:31.90. Marcella Candlin finished ninth overall with a new personal best time of 5:01.06 in the 1500m. Candlin also finished tenth overall in the 5000m run with a new personal best time of 19:24.07. Sam Maendel finished in seventh place in the 400m. Maendel's new personal best time of 1:05.37 in the 400m is the fastest in program history. Mikaya Cecora finished eleventh in the 400m with a season best time of 1:12.15. Crystal Rustami finished sixteenth in the 5000m run with a new personal best of 20:15.43. Orquidea Briceno finished fourteenth in the 1500m with a new personal best time of 5:12.28. Briceno would also finish in eleventh place with a new personal best time of 2:36.67 in the 800m run. Marcela Figeroa finished eighteenth in the 5000m run with a time of 20:56.67. Allison English finished nineteenth in the 5000m with a season best time of 21:20.41. Alexandra Swink finished twenty-seventh in the 800m with a season best time of 2:38.66. Carolina Cuello finished in twenty-fourth place with a time of 3:00.71 in the 800m. Hunter Larson finished fifteenth in the 5000m run with a new personal best time of 20:02.79.
Brandon Gardner kicked things off for the men with the 3000m steeplechase finishing fifth in a season best time of 11:17.44. Seven Hawks competed the 5000m almost five and half hours after Gardner ran earlier in the day. Oliver Melara-Perez lead the way in eleventh place with a new personal best time of 15:49.81. Vincent Mandracchia finished next in sixteenth place with a new personal best time of 16:36.17. Evan Miller followed close behind in seventeenth place with a season best time of 16:43.61. Gavin Bowers finished twenty-first overall with a time of 16:53.07. Aiden Hesseltine and Joe Palazzolo finished in twenty-second and twenty-thirds place(s) with new personal best time(s) of 16:54.67 and 17:04.49 respectively. Anthony Willis finished twenty-fourth overall with a new personal best time of 17:32.97.
The meet last evening at Vassar also marked the last spring competition in the orange and blue for the following Hawks as they will graduate in a few weeks:
Gavin Bowers
Marcella Candlin
Mikayla Cecora
Jazmyne Daily-Simpson
Allison English
Crystal Rustami
Vincent Mandracchia
Yesterday's meet marked the end of the Hawks' Spring season having competed in three meets, two of which were two-day competitions. The Hawks recorded double digit numbers of new personal bests and top five all-time program performances. Sam Maendel and Hunter Larson also set new school records in the 400m and 10000m respectively. They will return in August for the 2025 Fall Cross Country Season.
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