Manhattan College - Manhattanite Yearbook (Riverdale, NY)

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Boh AicGee managing to win, 27-28. X ' hile Ashenfelter and Kar er ran side by side o er tiie entire course and finished in a dead heat for first, the well-balanced Manhattanites placed in se en of the next eight spots. Running third, fourth, and hfth were Jack Moran, Phil O ' Connell, and Tom Comerford. This stir- ring victory did much to reassure the squad that they ranked with the best in the nation, and at the same time prepared the way for the most superlative feat of all: ' ictory in both the arsity and freshman IC4-A cham- pionships. Monday, November the seventeenth saw cross-country teams from all sections of the nation fathered together for the world series of collegiate cross-country, the 39th annual hitercoUegiate Association of Ama- teur Athletes of America. Thirty-six colleges sent the best of their hill and dalers to Van Cortlandt that day with teams traveling from Tom Comerford North Carolina U., Yale, Michigan State, Syracuse, and many other distant points. However, it was ironic that the Jasper forces, walking but two blocks, came ol? with the bunting in both divisions, a feat, which had not been performed since 1932 when another Manhattan team turned the trick. Pete Waters was coach of that other creat Green and VC ' hite group. This year saw 182 entries in the varsitv field and 1 20 in the freshman race. The day was cold, the runners even colder as they began their grueling grind across five miles of Van Cortlandt ' s vast expanses. More than one thousand persons watched as Bob Black, the expected winner, did not disappoint, win- ning in 25:37.1. The Rhode Island Stater led the field throughout the greater part of the fi e miles, and finished in front by sixty yards. Behind Black came Horace Ashen- felter of Penn State, Jack Milne of North 244

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Rienzo bre-iks ihe bowing 25-30. In this meet Jack Moran and Nate Rienzo finished in a dead heat for first, their time being a fast 25:47 for the A.6 mile course. A few days hiter on Election Day Van Cortlandt Park was the scene of an upset sec- ond only to the later and greater I C 4-A surprise upheaval. For it was here that the underdog Jaspers surprised everyone but themselves. In ending NYU ' s seven-year reign as Metropolitan Intercollegiate cross- country champ, the Eastmen recaptured a crown which had been held for eight years from 1931 to 1939 by Pete Waters ' teams. Beginning with 1940 the von Elling forces held the championship fast, allowing no one to wrest the title from their grasp. But 1947 was another year and the Jaspers were not to be denied this time. lJt e—l-C-4-A ' s Although Armand Osterberg of the Vio- lets withheld some honors from the Green and White crew by finishing first, Nate Ri- enzo, Phil O ' Connell and Jack Moran all finished among the first fi e by taking second, third and fifth places respectively. The point- score was: Manhattan, 28; NYU, 47; Ford- ham, 83; Columbia, 90; St. John ' s, 137; and St. Francis, l48. In addition to varsity hon- ors, the freshman squad also came through, winning by a slim 38-39 score over the St. Francis ' yearlings. Penn State br ought its two long-distance aces, Gerry Karver and Horace Ashenfelter to oppose the ht)me forces at Van Cortlandt in the final dual meet of the season. In a driv- ing rain which transformed the Park into a virtual quagmire, the Jaspers came up against their most rugged foe of the campaign, just 243

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Carolina, Jack Dianetti of Michigan State and Tom Strider of- Army. Then Manhattan ' s men began to finish with Nate Rienzo, ninth; Phil O ' Conneil, twelfth; Jack Moran, fifteenth; Tom Comer- ford, twentieth; and Paul Tiernan, thirty- first. Upon the finish of the race the judges retired to the held house in the Park Stadium while anxious throntrs milled about outside awaiting the announcement of the winner. At last the official announcement came of the team standings. The over-joyed Jasper rooters discovered that their heroes were varsity as well as freshmen cross-country champions of the nation. The final point- tabulation was Manhattan, 86; Syracuse, 107; Army, 116; Penn State, 116; followed by twenty-two other teams. Following the IC4-A meet by a week was the National Collegiate Athletic Association championships at East Lansing, Michigan. But due to Manhattan ' s annual retreat at the same time the Jasper squad could not make the trip despite a student rally, the likes of which Manhattan has never seen, which all but put the runners on the train to the Mich- igan capital. However, the President ruled against the trip and that ended the affair. Ironically enough the team winner at the NCAA ' s was Syracuse who linished runner- up to the Green the week before in the IC ' s. Although disappointed, the Manhattan squad hung up its cross-country togs for another year confident of the fact that it could have been national champ. Nevertheless, it was still a job well done! Frosh Cross Country Squad 245