Gugel, Terriers Win 2019 Patriot League Championship

Saturday, November 2

Hamilton, NY

12 PM

Boston University

Patriot League Championship

Gugel, Terriers Win 2019 Patriot League Championship

November 2, 2019 | Women's Cross Country

Results

HAMILTON, N.Y. - Senior Abigail Gugel won the individual title and four Terriers finished in the top 13 to lead the Boston University women's cross country team to victory at the 2019 Patriot League championship on Saturday afternoon at Colgate's Harry H. Lang Cross Country Course.

This is the Terriers' third Patriot League title and first since 2014. Gugel is the first Terrier female to claim an individual title since Rosa Moriello won her second consecutive conference meet in 2014.

Gugel earned Most Outstanding Runner of the Meet accolades while head coach Paul Spangler earned Coach of the Year honors for the first time in his three years with the Terriers. Since Spangler arrived in Boston, the Terriers have improved from seventh to fourth to first, a remarkable turnaround.

"Our goal was to keep moving up in the conference," Spangler said. "I'm really proud of the team and what they've accomplished. "They bought in and had their sights on bringing the trophy back to Boston. It's something they've thought about a lot this year and they put in the work to do it."

Gugel, who grew up about an hour from Colgate, outclassed the competition, crossing the finish line with a 6K time of 21:41.2, a full 16 seconds ahead of the second-place competitor. She was part of a Terrier pack that kept BU in front after crossing the 2.5K mark of the race.

"Cross country is one of the only sports out there that you can say, 'That's the best athlete in the conference,'" Spangler said. "It's a great accomplishment for her to come in and win the title, especially after missing last year with an injury. She also did it and doing it not too far from where she grew up. That was really special for her, to race so well in front of her friends and family."

As a team, the Terriers earned 52 points, seven fewer than second-place Bucknell (59). Army West Point took third with a score of 87 points. BU also earned a Turnpike Trophy point as Holy Cross was sixth with a score of 143 points.

Freshman Sophia Jacobs-Townsley was named Most Outstanding Rookie of the Meet after finishing eighth with a time of 22:18.9. Classmate Joceline Wind, competing for just the second time at the collegiate level, finished 11th with a time of 22:26.6, while junior Corinne Batsu placed 13th with a time of 22:37.2.

"Corinne has improved so much since high school," Spangler said. "To see her come from where she was to be an all-conference runner is a testament to her hard work over the years."

The terrific trio of Jacobs-Townsley, Wind and Batsu received Second Team All-Patriot League recognition. Freshman Andrea Claeson, who ran near the front of the field for most of the race, finished 19th with a time of 22:49.2 to round out the Terrier scorers.

"Andrea hit a wall with about a mile to go and did a great job to finish," Spangler said. "Joceline really stepped up today. When someone has an off day, you look for someone to step up, and Joceline made up the difference. Hats off to Bucknell. They ran a great race. It was touch and go that last part of the race."

Junior Veronica Kriss (23:23.5) finished 42nd, followed by classmate Laura Parkinson (23:39.8) in 53rd and sophomore Stephanie Casaletto (23:48.3) in 60th. Freshman Gabriela Yiangou (23:56.6), sophomore Angela Castronuovo (24:14.2) and junior Stephanie Forbes (26:47.2) also competed.

"The coaching staff did a great job this year to get the athletes ready," Spangler said. "I'm really proud of the work that everybody put in."

BU will look to take this momentum into the NCAA Northeast Regional, which will take place in Buffalo on Friday, Nov. 15.