GALLOWAY, N.J. — The New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) hosted its 2021 Cross Country Championships on Saturday, Oct. 30. The races were hosted by Stockton University. The New Jersey City University women's squad secured a sixth-place finish, while the NJCU men earned fifth-place.

The women's 6K championship race went off first at 10:30 a.m. The Gothic Knights were led once again by senior captain April Gutierrez (Jersey City, N.J./Dickinson), who placed 27th among scoring runners and 32nd overall with a time of 26:07.80. Behind her in 29th place among scoring runners was junior Tiffany Ortiz (Jersey City, N.J./University Academy Charter) who posted a time of 26:52.70, which ranked 41st overall. Freshman Nyla Boyd (Thomson, Ga./Thomson) and sophomores Jackeline Lopez (Elizabeth, N.J./Elizabeth) and Polina Agutina (Evaptoria, Ukraine/Number 6) also scored for the Gothic Knights. Boyd placed 41st among scoring runners and 72nd overall with a time of 30:52.50, followed by Lopez in 43rd (75th overall) with a personal-best time of 32:29.50. Agutina placed 45th (79th overall) with a personal-best time of 33:59.10.

On the men's side, the 8K championship race kicked off at 11:15 a.m. and NJCU was again led by sophomore Julius Libutsi (Jersey City, N.J./William L. Dickinson), who placed 28th among scoring runners with a personal-best time of 27:40.00, which was 49th overall. Junior Jaime Tlatelpa (Jersey City, N.J./University Academy Charter) was the Gothic Knights' second-best finisher as he came in 30th among scoring runners (55th overall) with a season-best time of 27:59.10. Another sophomore, Jake Sisk (Piscataway, N.J./Piscataway), came in 34th among scorers (68th overall) with a personal-best time of 29:02.00 and he was followed closely by junior Jose Recinos (Union City, N.J./Union City), who's season-best time of 29:12.20 gave him a 36th-place finish (72nd overall).

Three more sophomores finished in the top seven for Jersey City. Erich Fennelly (Stewartsville, N.J./Phillipsburg) placed 37th among scorers (74th overall) with a personal-best time of 29:21.90, followed one spot later at 38th (75th overall) by Topu Saha (Jersey City, N.J./William L. Dickinson) and his season-best time of 29:27.10. Coming in 39th place (82nd overall) was Elvis Rosas (West New York, N.J./Memorial) with a season-best time of 30:07.60. Four other runners competed for the NJCU men on the day as well.

Overall, the women's 6K title was won by the hosting Ospreys — ranked fourth in the most recent USTFCCCA Metro Region Rankings — who had four top-10 finishers. The individual title was one by Ramapo College's Jane Wagner. The men's 8K was won by The College of New Jersey — also ranked fourth in the most recent USTFCCCA Metro Region Rankings — which had five top-11 finishers. The individual title was one by Ramapo's Chris Anderson.

What's Next:
Now that NJACs has passed, the Gothic Knights shift their focus to the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships, which will be held at the Hudson Valley Sports Dome in Milton, N.Y., on Saturday, Nov. 6. Following that, should any Jersey City runners qualify, are the NCAA Division III Regional Championships on Saturday, Nov. 13.