JOPLIN, Mo. – Senior John Drago (Avon, Conn./Avon HS) was the top finisher for the Bentley University men's cross country team during the NCAA Division II Championships, which were held Saturday morning at Missouri Southern State University.

Drago used a strong last 5,000-meters to place sixth amongst NCAA Division II East Region runners and 97th overall, in a field of 246, with a 10,000-meter time of 31:27.7. He stood in 139th after the first 5K, but improved by 42 places during the second-half of the race. Only six runners in the field had a bigger improvement.

Teddy Farley (Acton, Mass./Acton-Boxborough Reg.HS) was Bentley's number two runner, crossing the line in 115th place with a 31:39.1. He was the team's leader at the midpoint, completing the first 5,000 in 15:13.2, a clocking that put him in the top 100 at the time.

The next three for coach Kevin Curtin's team were also seniors. Sean Maguire (Essex, Vt./ Essex HS) was 159th in 32:06.2,Craig Robinson (Scarborough, Maine/Scarborough HS) placed 175th in 32:35.0 and Rob Dextradeur (Branford, Conn./Branford HS) finished in 32:35.0 for 198th.

As a team, Bentley was 26th in a 32-team field with a score of 657. The Falcons were second amongst the three East Region teams, with American International 12th and Stonehill College 30th.

Adams State (Colo.), with three of the top four finishers, ran away with the team championship, and individual honors went to  Micah Chelimo of Alaska-Anchorage with his 28.56.6 giving him a 15.5 second margin of victory over the first Adams State runner.

NCAA DIVISION II CHAMPIONSHIPS
At Joplin, Mo. 

Team: 1. Adams State (Colo.) 34, 2. Colorado Mines 102, 3. Alaska-Anchorage 148, 4. Augustana (S.D.) 182, 5. Chico State (Calif.) 183, 6. Western State (Colo.) 194, 7. Grand Valley State (Mich.) 222, 8. Missouri Southern 308, 9. Edinboro (Pa.) 325, 10. Ashland (Ohio) 325; 11. Colo.-Colorado Springs 340, 12. American International 357, 13. Ferris State (Mich.) 370, 14. Southwest Baptist (Mo.) 377, 15. Cedarville (Ohio) 390, 16. Humboldt State (Calif.) 448, 17. Southern Indiana 479, 18. Eastern New Mexico 493, 19. Lock Haven 493, 20. Minnesota State 498, 21. Western Washington 542, 22. San Francisco State 548; 23. Fort Lewis (Colo.) 598; 24. Columbus State (Ga.) 606, 25. East Stroudsburg (Pa._ 610; 26. Bentley 657; 27. King (Tenn.) 664, 28. Mount Olive (N.C.) 687; 29. Florida Tech 742; 30. Stonehill 791, 31. Alabama-Huntsville 885, 32. Nova Southeastern (Fla.) 915. 

Top Individuals: 1. Micah Chielmo, Alaska-Anchorage 28:56.6; 2. Kevin Batt, Adams State, 29:12.1; 3. Tabor Stevens, Adams State, 29:12.2; 4. Matthew Daniels, Adams State, 29:16.2; 5. Alex Monroe, Lock Haven, 29:18.6. 

Bentley Runners: 97. John Drago, 31:27.7; 115. Teddy Farley, 31:39.1; 159. Sean Maguire, 32:06.2; 185. Craig Robinson, 32:35.0; 198. Rob Dextradeur, 32:47.2; 227. Conor Higgins, 33:29.7; 244. Sam Powell, 35:55.2.