Williamstown, MA– At today's historic Little Three Championship meet, the Williams College Men's Cross Country team competed well against longtime rivals Amherst College and Wesleyan University. The Ephs took home second place with a score of 31 points, separated by just three points from first-place team Amherst (28). Wesleyan secured third, scoring 68 points.
Racing on the familiar terrain of their home course at Mount Greylock High School, the Ephs approached the race as a learning moment for the many newcomers of the group. "We have a lot of first-years, so we were focused on introducing them to collegiate racing and showing them the ropes today," Captain
Nikhil DeNatale '26 emphasized. Head Coach
Dusty Lopez '01 echoed similar sentiments. "Our goal was to practice flexibility and adaptability, and not get carried away early on in the race. Our experienced people did a great job of that, and some of our newer folks have some learning to do on that front, but that's to be expected. When you look at the development that people are showing in terms of being good racers and packing up and being competitive, we accomplished most of our objectives today," Coach Lopez enthused.
Senior captain
Chuckie Namiot '25 was the first Eph to cross the line as well as the individual Little Three Champion. Namiot remained patient as the race progressed, working to maintain the lead while contending against a pack of competitors. "I knew Amherst had a trio of very talented runners, and wanted to keep that in mind, but I also knew that I had a lot of fitness from the summer. My plan going in was to spend the first half of the race very relaxed and pick it up in the back half if necessary to secure a win," Namiot said. In a sprint to the finish, Namiot emerged victorious over Harrison Dow '27 of Amherst, winning with a time of 18:45.
The rest of the Ephs were not far behind Namiot, displaying the team's depth with their focused pack running and close finishes.
Luke Zanuck '26,
Grahm Tuohy-Gaydos '25, and
Alex Kemp '28 worked together over the course of the 6k distance, finishing in 18:54, 18:56, and 18:57, respectively.
Eli Welch '28 was within reach, crossing the line in a time of 19:00 to clinch tenth place overall. Fellow first-year
Emil Nelson '28, in a time of 19:05, was the next Eph to cross the line. Close behind was
Henry Alexander '27, racing to a 14th place finish (19:08).
Rick Yanashita '26 and
Malcolm Oakes '28 crossed the line in 19:11 and 19:13, respectively. Rounding out the top ten for the team was
Keiyu Mamiya '28, finishing in a time of 19:30.
The next time the Ephs toe the line will be as the hosts of the Purple Valley Classic and Alumni Race on September 21st.
Live results linked here.
