Manfra Named GNAC Indoor Track Athlete of the Year
More honors came in for senior standout Emily Manfra of the Suffolk women’s indoor track & field team as she was named the GNAC Track Athlete of the Year, the conference released Thursday afternoon.
WINTHROP, Mass. – More honors came in for senior standout Emily Manfra of the Suffolk women's indoor track & field team as she was named the GNAC Track Athlete of the Year, the conference released Thursday afternoon.
The accolade, which is the first in the league history, comes after Manfra wrapped up a historic run in a Rams' uniform, that was cut short, a day prior to the 2020 NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Manfra's last go at Suffolk on the indoor track saw the distance runner win a pair of GNAC individual titles, taking the 800 and mile, easily, to help the blue-and-gold finish as the runner-up. From there, the Stoneham, Massachusetts local picked up two all-region honors, one from the New England Coaches Association and another from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), a first for a Ram in program history. Those accolades were thanks in part to her first sub-5:00.0 regional mile, with a time of 4:57.46, good for second-place in the 27-runner field at regionals. For the second straight season she punched her ticket to nationals where she was favored to become in All-American in the mile as she ventured to Winston-Salem, North Carolina with the second-best time in New England and fourth-best in the DIII with a 4:54.13 clip, which she achieved Jan. 24, 2020 at Boston University's John Thomas Terrier Classic. For her performances throughout the season, Manfra picked up five GNAC Track Athlete of the Week nods.
In addition to the athletic awards, freshman Cassandra Kuechler represented the Rams on the conference's All-Sportsmanship team, which was established to honor one player from each team in the league for outstanding dedication to sportsmanship and for their portrayal of good sportsmanship, fair play and positive attitude.
2019-20 WOMEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD ALL-GNAC
Women's Track Athlete of the Year: Emily Manfra, Suffolk
Women's Field Athlete of the Year: Amanda Jordan, Emmanuel
Women's Rookie of the Year: Kennedy Davignon, Emmanuel
Women's Coach of the Year: Reava Potter, Emmanuel
Women's Institutional Sportsmanship Award: Colby Sawyer
GNAC All-Sportsmanship Team
Nina HIlls, Colby Sawyer
Cara Martin, Emmanuel
Allie Clancy, Lasell
Emily Fagundo, Regis
Kaylee Todisco, Saint Joseph's (Maine)
Cassandra Kuechler, Suffolk