Engineers Win UMass-Dartmouth Invitational

DARTMOUTH, Mass. - The nationally-ranked no. nine MIT women's cross country team put on a dominant display en route to a first-place finish at the UMass-Dartmouth Invitational Saturday. Tech had four harriers among the top 11 finishers in a meet that featured many of the top squads in New England, including a number of New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) schools.

Jacqui Wentz, the Cardinal and Grey's top runner a year ago, returned to form after sitting out last weekend's Engineer's Cup race. Wentz was the top overall finisher, a feat she accomplished twice as a junior, breaking the tape 19 seconds faster than her nearest competitor with a time of 17:40. Maria Monks was next across the line for the Engineers, completing the five-kilometer course in 18:08. Alina Gatowski (18:31) and Brooke Johnson (18:32) finished back-to-back in 11th and 12th place respectively. Only two teams, Rowan and Keene State, had a second runner ahead of MIT's fourth best. Freshman Chandler Burfield added valuable points with a 33rd place showing to round out the scoring for Tech.

The Cardinal and Grey earned a total of 60 points to outlast runner-up Brandeis with 75. This is the second consecutive year that MIT has captured the UMass-Dartmouth Invite.

Tech will take part in the Cod Fish Bowl next Saturday, September 26 at Franklin Park. The race begins at 12:00 p.m.