Nov. 10, 2005

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The 13th-ranked Providence College women's cross country team and the 30th-ranked men's squad will compete at the NCAA Northeast Regionals on Saturday, November 12 at Franklin Park in Boston, Mass. The men's race will begin at 2:30 p.m., while the women's race will start at 3:15 p.m. The top two teams from each race will automatically qualify for the NCAA's. The PC women will be aiming to qualify for the NCAA's for the 17th consecutive season, while the men are seeking their 11th consecutive trip to the NCAA's under the tutelage of 22nd year Head Coach Ray Treacy.

The Providence women have won the last two NCAA Northeast Regionals as Kim Smith (Auckland, New Zealand) won consecutive individual titles in 2003 and 2004. This season, Providence has placed among the top two in four of their five meets. In their last competition, the Friars finished second of 16 teams at the BIG EAST Championships on Friday, October 28 at Van Cortlandt Park in Bronx, N.Y. Senior All-American Fiona Crombie (Christchurch, New Zealand) captured the individual title as she ran a time of 20:50 to win her first BIG EAST title. At the 2004 NCAA Northeast Regionals, Crombie finished second overall, behind Smith.

PC's squad also will feature junior Meghan Owen (Danielson, Conn.) and graduate Aine Hoban (Wakefield, England). Owen recently placed ninth (21:37) at the BIG EAST Championships, while Hoban ran to a 15th-place finish (21:43). Freshman Katie DiCamillo (Garden City, N.Y.), seniors Katie Twarog (Albany, N.Y.) and Ashley Jensen (Lincoln, R.I.), as well as sophomore Michelle Childs (Cameron, Ontario) makeup the team that will compete on Saturday.

The Providence men captured last season's NCAA Northeast Regional title for the first time since 2001. In all, PC has won five regional titles since 1998. Last season, Martin Fagan (Mullingar, Ireland) was PC's third highest finisher as he placed sixth overall. This season, Fagan has been PC's top runner. Most recently, he had an exceptional performance at the BIG EAST Championships on October 28 at Van Cortlandt Park, finishing first overall and leading the Friar squad to a third-place finish. Fagan's time of 23:48 broke a 27-year-old course record.

Sophomore Ahmed Haji (West Hartford, Conn.) also enjoyed a strong performance at the BIG EAST Championships and will look to carry that success to the regionals. Haji finished sixth overall in a time of 24:30. Classmate Max Smith (Dunedin, New Zealand), who made his season debut on October 15 at Penn State, competed at the BIG EAST Championships and placed 14th (25:00). Senior Joe Dionne (Oshawa, Ontario), who suffered an injury at the Penn State Invitational on October 15, will be looking to regain his form from earlier this season. Rounding out PC's squad for Saturday's meet is senior Liam Reale (Hospital, Ireland) as well as juniors Nick Weidman (Sudbury, Mass.) and Matt Kinback (Shrewsbury, Mass.).

If the Friars qualify, they will compete at the NCAA's on Monday, November 21 in Terre Haute, Ind.