HARTFORD, Conn. (October 31, 2026) – The Western New England men's and women's cross country teams picked up fifth and eighth place finishes, respectively, at today's Conference of New England (CNE) Championship at Keney Park in Hartford. Lucas Franco led the WNE men, while Olivia Kay took the top time for the women's team. 

Top Performers:

Men:

• Lucas Franco ran a 27:11.3 8k race today, topping his time by two seconds from his last race and finishing in 12^thplace overall to lead the charge for Western New England. 
• Pablo Tapion was next to cross the finish line for the Golden Bears, coming in 31^st place overall for the Blue and Gold. Jamie Hosier was one place behind Tapion, taking 32^nd place in 28:33.6, just eight seconds off his fastest race of the season. 
• Nicholas Smith was the fourth Golden Bear to finish on the day, coming in with a time of 28:38.1, 36^th overall. Austin Vale da Serra had his best race of the season today, taking 43^rd overall in 29:06.3. 
• Travis Ryley (46^th), Kyle Cichowicz (65^th), Alejandro Rivera (67^th), Jack Gibbs (77^th), and Christian Goranson (87^th) all ran the course for WNE in a successful day, seeing the Golden Bears place fifth out of ten teams. 

Women:

• Olivia Kay's 6k run in 25:06.8 led the Golden Bears with a 22^nd place finish on the afternoon. Lia Pouliot finished the race in 25:45.3, taking 34^th overall. 
• Fallon Lynch took 40^th overall for Western New England, coming away with a time of 26:06.6. Caitlin Reilly crossed the finish line in 49^th place, coming in with a time of 26:31.2.
• Kenna O'Brien (67^th) and Ava Bulmer (76^th) also ran for the Golden Bears, helping the Blue and Gold secure an 8^th-place finish out of ten teams for the race. 

Up Next on the Schedule:

• Western New England sets its sights on the NCAA Regional event, which will take place on Saturday, November 14, hosted by Trinity College at Wickham Park.