News & Events
City Tech Cross Country Runner Takes CUNYAC ‘Rookie of the Year Award’
The outstanding debut season performance by New York City College of Technology freshman Cross Country runner Dario Rosales has earned him the CUNY Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) Rookie of the Year Award. This is the first time the honor has been awarded a City Tech Cross Country student-athlete.
“I am not surprised that he has earned the Rookie of the Year Award,” said Men & Women’s Cross Country Head Coach John Strickland. “Week in and week out, Rosales was the top freshman at Van Cortlandt Park on Sundays. He’s a poised and determined young runner with everything it takes to compete at the top level. He will be a force here at City Tech for a number of years.”
Rosales topped his own school record with a time of 30:00.3 in the five-mile race this past weekend at the CUNYAC Championships in the Bronx. Rosales finished in third place in the race, his top finish in his final race of the short season. His previous best time was 30:05, which he ran three weeks earlier in the Lehman College Invitational Meet. At the City Tech Invitational on October 8, he took fourth place again in a time of 30:36. He has led the Yellow Jackets in each of his four meets this season, finishing in the top seven in each race.
In addition to Rosales, the 2006 men’s team also benefited from performances by newcomers Dane François and Pedro Agostini and veteran Issaka Yaya. Each ran well in the CUNYAC championships with François (22nd place) grabbing a personal best 33:37 and Agostini (25th place) finishing right behind in 33:58. François and Agostini have participated in every meet this year and have each dropped five minutes off their times since early September. Yaya, also a returning starter on the City Tech basketball team, ran 35:25 (35th place) to help the Yellow Jackets finish in sixth place in the Championships, ahead of Brooklyn, Hunter and Medgar Evers Colleges, respectively, in the nine school race.
On the women’s side, City Tech placed eighth in the team standings, as newcomer Mareena Creary finished in 36th place to lead the squad. Team leader Tempestt Casey ran a strong 37:31 and her teammate Dyshea Smiley ran a personal best 37:49 for the Yellow Jackets. The future of the women’s team also looks bright for City Tech next season.
10/30/06
