Ellen Chappell (DAL) and Scott Donald (StFX) capture first place at AUS Cross Country Championships
(HALIFAX, NS) – Point Pleasant Park in Halifax was the site of the 14/15 AUS Cross Country Championships and in the women's 6k race it was all Dalhousie. Ellen Chappell from the Dalhousie Tigers finished first with a time of 22:22.53 and Scott Donald, from StFX crossed the line first in the men's 10K with a time of 32:24.80 to capture individual gold medals at the Subway Atlantic University Sport cross country championships that were hosted by Saint Mary's University.
Chappell, last year's 2nd place finisher, was followed by teammates Colleen Wilson (22:53.42) and Britany MacArther (22:54.66). The Tigers took the top four finishes and 7 of the top 10 spots in the women's 6K.
For the host Saint Mary's, Monique Muise was the top Huskies' finisher in a time of 25:47.69.
St. Francis Xavier's Scott Donald finished first in the men's 10km race with a time of 32:24.80. Donald was followed closely by Dalhousie's, Matt McNeil (32:33.89) and fellow StFX runner Riley Johnston (32:49.91) who finished in third place. From the host Huskies, last year's winner, John Kuto, finished in 4th spot with a time of 33:03.98.
The Dalhousie Tigers continued their team dominance by claiming their 2nd consecutive first-place team finish in the women's championship. The UNB Varsity Reds team were the 2nd place team, taking home silver medals, and the St. Francis Xavier X-Women claimed a third-place team finish.
The St. Francis Xavier X-Men were the top men's team finishers, followed by Dalhousie University in 2nd place and the Memorial Seahawks in third.
Top Rooke honors went to Leah Gouthro from StFX and Nick Favero from St. Francis Xavier.
The individual winners in today's championship are as follows:
Women's:
Gold: Ellen Chappell, DAL
Silver: Colleen Wilson, DAL
Bronze: Britany MacArthur, DAL
Men's:
Gold: Scott Donald, StFX
Silver: Matt MacNeil, DAL
Bronze: Riley Johnston, StFX
Team (women's):
Dalhousie
UNB
StfX
Acadia
MUN
UdeM
SMU
STU
Team (men's):
StFX
DAL
MUN
UNB
SMU
UdeM
STU
2014 AUS cross country major award winners and all-stars:
Women's:
Athlete of the year: Ellen Chappell, DAL
Coach of the year: Rich Lehman, DAL
Rookie of the year: Leah Gouthro, StFX
Student-athlete community service award: Katie Wallace, UNB
All-star team (top 7)
Ellen Chappell, DAL
Colleen Wilson, DAL
Britany MacArthur, DAL
Maddy Crowell, DAL
Katie Robinson, UNB
Emily Ferguson, DAL
Emily Clarke, DAL
Men's:
Athlete of the year: Scott Donald, StFX
Coach of the year: Bernie Chisholm, StFX
Rookie of the year: Nick Favero, StFX
Student-athlete community service award: Bryden Tate, StFX
All-star team (top 7)
Scott Donald, StFX
Matt McNeil, DAL
Riley Johnston, StFX
John Kuto, SMU
Lee Wesselius, StFX
Bryden Tate, StFX
Nick Wood, DAL
Source: SMU Communications
Photos – Nick Pearce