Trio of Seniors to Captain 2012 Bentley Men’s Cross Country Team
WALTHAM, Mass. – Seniors Rob Dextradeur (Branford, Conn./Branford HS) and John Drago (Avon, Conn./Avon HS) will serve as captains of the Bentley University men's cross country team for the second straight season, and this year will be joined in the leadership role by classmate Sean Maguire (Essex, Vt./Essex HS), coach Kevin Curtin announced.
The three are expected to set the pace for a veteran Bentley team that projects to have at least six seniors among its top seven runners. That experience is a major reason why the Falcons are third in the USTFCCCA Division II East preseason rankings, as well as 32nd nationally in Division II.
Dextradeur was Bentley's number one runner in 2011, with his list of performances including 15th in the NCAA East Regional and 22nd in the Northeast-10 Championships. Drago was 19th in the NCAA Regional, and Maguire, who is coming off an outstanding outdoor season, was 36th in the NE-10's.
All three have distinguished themselves in the classroom as well as on the track. Drago was selected as a third-team Capital One NCAA Division II Academic All-America last year, Drago and Dextradeur were both voted to the 2011 Academic All-Northeast-10 cross country team, and Maguire earned a similar honor for indoor and outdoor track.
Bentley opens its season Saturday with the Shacklette Invitational at Saint Anselm College.
USTFCCCA DIV. II PRESEASON RANKINGS
1. Adams State, 2. Western State, 3. Chico State, 4. Augustana (S.D.), 5. Grand Valley State, 6. Colorado Mines, 7. Southern Indiana, 8. Alaska Anchorage, 9. Edinboro, 10. Western Washington, 11. UMass-Lowell, 12. Lock Haven, 13. Colorado-Colorado Springs, 14. Eastern New Mexico, 15. Western Oregon, 16. East Central, 17. Central Missouri, 18. New Mexico Highlands, 19. Metro State, 20. Ashland, 21. Humboldt State, 22. East Stroudsburg, 23. Shippensburg, 24. Minnesota State, 25. Stonehill, 26. Missouri Southern, 27. San Francisco State, 28. Wayne State (Mich.); 29. Alabama-Huntsville, 30. Ferris State, 31. Slippery Rock, 32. Bentley, 33. American International, 34. Florida Southern, 35. Hillsdale.