Cross Country to Host, Race at NCAA D3 East Regionals Saturday

BOSTON – For the third time in program history, second straight season, Suffolk University's men's and women's cross country program will put its NCAA hosting hat on as the Rams will serve as the host for the NCAA Division III East Regional Cross Country Championships this Saturday, Nov. 16 at Hopkinton Fair Grounds in Hopkinton, New Hampshire. 

Approximately 40 teams will converge in the Granite State with the women's 6k race set for an 11 a.m. start with the men's 8k following an hour later with a trip to the 2024 NCAA Division III Championship on the line.  

FOLLOW ALONG
Don't miss any of the action from the 2024 NCAA DIII East Regionals. Live results can be followed here.

SOCIALIZE
Ram Nation has a chance to keep up with all the latest news and notes on Suffolk Athletics, its student-athletes and teams by following the Rams on Facebook, Instagram and X. Fans are encouraged to use the hashtag #RamNation a behind-the-scene look at Suffolk Athletics.

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL
For everything you need to know about the 2024 NCAA Division III East Regional Championships visit the tournament central page on GoSuffolkRams.com here. 

EVENT SCHEDULE

• 9:00 AM - Course Opens
• 10:35 AM - National Anthem
• 11:00 AM - Women's 6k
• 12:00 PM - Men's 8k
• 1:30 PM - Awards Ceremony 

THE COURSE
The men and women from around the East region will each be competing in the regional race on the course at Hopkinton Fair Grounds. A map of the course is outlined here.  

TO BE THE BEST, YOU HAVE TO BEAT THE BEST
The NCAA Division III East Regional is one of the most competitive in the country.  

On the women's side MIT sits atop the nationally rankings and Tufts enters the weekend at 16th in the top-25. 

A pair of men's teams are featured in the latest national poll highlighted as well with No. 19 Tufts and No. 20 MIT.  

MORE INFO: USTFCCCA National & Regional Rankings

AUTOMATIC QUALIFIERS
With the 10 region set-up, there will be one automatic qualifier at each region handed out to the top place team.  

AT-LARGE BIDS
Teams who do not top their respective fields Saturday will still have a chance to make the NCAAs as 22 at-large bids for squads will be awarded. Additionally, the top seven individuals from each regional, 70 total, who did not qualify with their team will earn a bid to the national championships as well.  

The entire 2024 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championship field will be announced on NCAA.com on Sunday, Nov. 17 before 3 p.m. 

Suffolk has seen one women, Emily Manfra, and two men, Tim Barry and Matyas Csiki-Fejer earn at-large bids to the NCAA Championships. Manfra earned a ticket twice, in 2018 and 2019, respectively. Csiki-Fejer was also a two-time NCAA Championship qualifier in 2019 and 2021, while Barry raaced to nationals a year ago, in 2023, and Csiki-Fejer

ALL-NEW ENGLAND UP FOR GRABS
There are two all-region teams, one given by the USTFCCCA and the other handed out by the DIII New England Association.  

In order to garner USTFCCCA All-East Region, an individual must place in the top 35 Saturday, while the top 20 finishes at Hopkinton Fair Grounds will be awarded All-New England from the DIII New England Association.  

SUFFOLK'S REGIONAL HISTORY
Suffolk's men's team will run at the event for the sixth straight time and eighth time in program history. The Rams, who debuted on the regional scene in 2009, had their best team showing in a year ago with a eighth-place performance.  

The women on the other hand have raced in eighth regionals and have one-upped the program's record in the last three outings with last season's squad finishing sixth. 

RAMS REIGONAL HISTORY
Suffolk's runners have made their presence known on the regional course over the last handful of years.  

The best showing by a male runner at East regionals came by Matyas Csiki-Fejer in 2021 when he finished in fourth with a time of 25:40.4. 

On the women's side, Emily Manfra holds Suffolk's regional record with a 21:47.3, good for 14th in 2019. Sydney Fogg will be the first Ram to run at her fourth regionals since Manfra, while Thomas Novy will be the first blue-and-gold male runner to compete at regionals four times.   

COACH'S QUOTE
"The women's team is in great spirits after their performances at CNE's," head coach Will Feldman said. "The goal all season has been a top three finish at regionals. The region is very competitive and it's going to be an extremely tough battle. I know that there won't' be a tougher team than our women Saturday and because of that they have a chance of doing something special."  

Feldman continued, "CNE's was the best performance I've witnessed by a men's team at Suffolk. One through five they all ran excellence races and executed races and executed their race plans. I know we're capable of a top eight finish or better on Saturday." 

SUFFOLK'S SCOUT [ MEN ] 

• Tim Barry and Thomas Novy should all-region honors for the second straight season and contend for individual bids for nationals. 
• Hayden Green, who had his best performance as a Ram last weekend, will join Barry and Novy on the course as well as Sean Jacobsen, Cam Fredette and Connor Hayward.
• Jadan Wenceslao will make his cross country regionals debut.  

SUFFOLK'S SCOUT [ WOMEN ] 

• Amalia Dorion, Amy Pattelena and Sydney Fogg will all be in contention for all-region honors. 
• Both Dorion and Pattelena have a great opportunity to earn a spot at nationals. The latter was the first athlete out of nationals in 2023 and she is peaking at just the right time to be someone to keep an eye on. 
• The remainder of the Rams will be Sofia Moukaddem, Emily Concepcion, Shannon Groom and Megan Dunn. 
• Groom and Dunn will be making their regional debuts. 

RAMS RANKINGS
In the last edition of the 2024 USTFCCCA Regional Rankings, Suffolk's women's team, staples in the poll this season, were slotted a sixth.
MORE READING: Women's Cross Country Sits Sixth in East in USTFCCCA Rankings 

ALL-CONFERENCE HONOREES [ MEN ] 

• Tim Barry, Thomas Novy, Hayden Green and Cam Fredette all finished in the top-15 at CNE Championships en route to All-CNE recognition. 

• Novy and Green captured their third all-conference nods in as many years and in their collegiate careers.
• Barry scooped up All-CNE for the second time and in as many years. 
• Fredette is a first-time all-league performer.   

ALL-CONFERENCE ACCOLADES [ WOMEN ] 

• Suffolk's women's squad tied a program-record all-league honorees in Amalia Dorion, Amy Pattelena, Sydney Fogg, Sofia Moukaddem and Emily Concepcion. 
• Fogg became the first-ever Ram to collect four all-league accolades, one each year of her collegiate career.
• Pattelena secured her third all-conference nod, just the fourth-ever Ram to hold a trio of all-league distinctions, while Concepcion earned all-conference for the second time in her collegiate career and in as many years.
• Dorion and Moukaddem were first-time all-conference honorees as Rams. 

LAST TIME OUT [ MEN ] 
Suffolk men's cross country took the second spot at the Conference of New England Championships Saturday afternoon on the campus of Western New England. The runner-up finish marks the fourth in a row and fourth time in program history that the Rams claimed second in the league title race. 

Suffolk captured second with 50 points to finish behind four-time conference champ Roger Williams, who earned 38 points behind four all-league runners including back-to-back individual champ Nathan Tassey (25:14.97). Endicott finished with 46 points behind the blue-and-gold to round out the podium.  

MORE READING: Men's Cross Country Runner-Up at CNE Championships

LAST TIME OUT [ WOMEN ] 
Suffolk women's cross added a new line to its record books as the Rams raced to their fourth consecutive conference crown at the 2024 Conference of New England (CNE) Championship Saturday, Nov. 2 on the campus of Western New England.  

Suffolk's fourth straight title, first under the CNE moniker, came on the heels of a team score of 37 to top the eight-team field. The Rams performance was 30 points ahead of runner-up Roger Williams.  

MORE READING:  CNE Champions! Women's Cross Country Fourpeats

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
Pending Saturday's showing, Suffolk's season will either continue onto the 2024 NCAA DIII Cross Country Championships, which are on tap for next Saturday, Nov. 23 in Terre Haute, Indiana at Rose Hulman or cap off the Rams 2023 campaign.