NEWARK, N.J. – The St. Joseph's University, New York (Brooklyn) cross country teams competed at the 22nd Annual NJIT Invitational on Saturday at Branch Brook Park, with Jennifer Sarji (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and Ganilo Quintos (Quincy, Mass.) leading the Bears in the open races.
In the women's 5K open race, the Bears finished eighth out of 10 scoring teams with 198 points. Sarji paced the six Brooklyn finishers, crossing the line in 24:01.0 to place 35th overall. Jizelle Velazquez (New York, N.Y.) (26:50.1) and Vivian Garcia (Eastvale, Calif.) (26:50.8) followed in 55th and 56th, respectively, finishing less than a second apart.
Ana Rosa Herreros (Cordoba, Spain) placed 61st with a time of 27:59.2, while Doraly Diaz (Brooklyn, N.Y.) (29:02.1) and Meredith Vento (Wauwatosa, Wis.) (30:17.9) rounded out the Bears' finishers in 66th and 68th, respectively.
On the men's side, Brooklyn placed 12th in the 8K open race with 309 points. Quintos led the way with a 49th-place finish, clocking 30:46.5. Jon-Marcus Diaz (Corona, N.Y.) followed in 71st with a time of 32:41.7, while Trey DeMeo (Barnegat, N.J.) finished 92nd in 34:15.7.
Gabriel Lopez (Forest Hills, N.Y.) (37:08.9) and Guillermo Noriega (Glendale, N.Y.) (37:36.8) completed the Bears' scoring five, finishing 108th and 110th, respectively.
The Bears return to action on Saturday, October 17, at the St. Joseph's (Long Island) Invitational, held at Sunken Meadow State Park in Kings Park, N.Y. The meet is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m.
