NEW BRITAIN, Conn. – The UMass Lowell cross country team put up great times Friday afternoon, as they competed in the CCSU Mini Meet hosted by Central Connecticut State. The women's team recorded a sixth-place finish with its two sub-varsity runners finishing in the top 21. The men finished in fourth place overall, earning three top-five spots in the sub-varsity race.
 
"It was a good day overall," said Head Coach Gary Gardner. "Caroline was tuning up for conference next week while the majority of the team was finishing off their season."
 
Leading the women's team was graduate student Caroline O'Shea (Nashua, N.H.), who earned a fourth-place finish off a personal-best time of 10:08.1. Senior Allison Anusauskas (Auburn, Mass.) followed O'Shea with a 15th place finish and a career-best time of 10:29.7. The River Hawks had another four members finish in the top half of the 74 race participants.
 
The men's side was led by sophomore William Benoit (Fairhaven, Mass.), who finished 11th out of the 96 runners with a career-best time of 15:13. 
 
Junior Tyler Sullivan (Walpole, Mass.) finished just behind him in 15th place with a time of 15:15.6. Senior Samuel Toolin (North Kingstown, R.I.) and freshman Frederick Coleman (Methuen, Mass.) finished in 21st and 23rd place respectively. Toolin's 15:21.2 time marked a personal-best mark for the Massachusetts native. Rookie Coleman turned in a solid performance in his first collegiate 5K, clocking in at 15:23.
 
"Will Benoit, Tyler Sullivan and Ally Anusauskas also finished off the season very well," noted Gardner. "It was really encouraging because we will be depending on many of them in future seasons."
 
Freshmen Nathanael Fondakowski (Pelham, N.H.), junior Tyler Parrado (Weehawken, N.J.) and senior William Cole-French (Hanoi, Vietnam) finished up the scoring for the River Hawks. Fondakowski posted a time of 15:33 in his first career 5K, while Parrado cruised to a 15:54.7 time and Cole-French reached a career-best mark of 16:46.8.
 
The Women's Sub Varsity 3K featured just two UMass Lowell runners. Rachel Thomas (Perry Hall, Md.) finished in fifth place with a time of 11:03, while senior Leah Rudolph (Gloucester, Mass.) came in 21st place with a time of 11:31.2.
 
Finally, in the Men's Sub Varsity 5K, the River Hawks had 16 total runners and dominated the competition. Four runners finished in the top 10 and nine in the top 20, giving UMass Lowell a first-place finish. Sophomore Adnan Abdirahman (Charlestown, Mass.) led the way with a personal-best time of 15:39.8 and a third-place finish. Freshman Hatim Boukhtam (Abington, Mass.) and junior Tanner Jellison (Wakefield, Mass.) both earned career-best marks of 15:42.1 and 15:45.5, respectively, to place fourth and fifth overall.
 
Two River Hawks saw personal bests in New Britain to close out their seasons. Junior Jake Connolly (Weymouth, Mass.) reached ninth place with his time of 15:51.2 and Chris McCauliff finished in 11th place with a time of 15:51.3.
  
The River Hawks take on the America East Cross Country Championships next Saturday, October 29, in Baltimore, Md.