NORTH DARTMOUTH, Mass. - The top men's and women's runners in the Little East Conference and Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference converge on the campus of Keene State College for the 13th annual New England Alliance Cross Country Championships on Saturday, Oct. 31 at the Owl Athletic Complex in Keene, N.H. The women's 5-kilometer race is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m., while the men's 8-kilometer competition following approximately an hour later.

Fans unable to make the trip to Keene, can follow the sprint to the finish line and awards ceremonies live on LittleEast.tv. The Little East Conference Web site will also provide in-depth coverage of the championship meet with the women's and men's individual and team results as well as complete recaps. 

The alliance meet is run concurrently with the annual Little East Conference Cross Country Championships. The Little East will celebrate its 22nd annual conference championship this Fall.

The New England Alliance 12-institution field is comprised of six schools from each conference. The Little East is represented by Eastern Connecticut State University, Keene State College, the University of Massachusetts Boston, the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, Rhode Island College, and the University of Southern Maine, while the MASCAC is represented by Bridgewater State College, Fitchburg State College, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, Massachusetts Maritime Academy, Westfield State College, and Worcester State College. The meet will be scored two different ways to determine an individual and team alliance champion as well as an individual and team Little East champion.

In 2008, Keene State captured both the men’s and women’s New England Alliance and Little East Conference Championships at Stanley Park in Westfield, Mass. On the men’s side, the Owls placed six runners in the top-10 of the individual alliance standings to outdistance conference rival Southern Maine by 12 points and to raise the alliance and conference trophies for the 10th time in program history. Sophomore Brandon Schillemat (Nelson, N.H.) paced all Keene State harriers, covering the 8-kilometer championship course in 25 minutes, 51.17 seconds to place fourth overall.

The Owls’ female squad continued its domination of the Little East Championship since the start of the decade, winning the program’s ninth consecutive title. Junior Rita Marcotte (Heath, Mass.) was the first Keene State runner to cross the finish line in a time of 18 minutes, 34.64 seconds. Four of her teammates completed the 5-kilometer course in the top-seven of the individual conference standings to earn All-Little East recognition.

The inaugural New England Alliance Championship meet was hosted by the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth on Nov. 1, 1997.