Winners at last season's opener at the University of Hartford Invitational, Southern Connecticut men's cross country came up just short of a repeat, trailing UConn (35) by three points (38) for second place.
In the Men's 5K Team Results, UConn won with 35 points and Southern Connecticut State was 2nd with 38 points in the 11-team field. UConn averaged 16:12 for a total time of 1:21:01, while Southern averaged 16:19 for 1:21:35 — just 34 seconds separating the two programs over five scorers. Roger Williams was 3rd with 95, followed by host Hartford with 103 and New Haven with 133.
The Owls were led by sophomore Colton Sallum, who placed 3rd overall in 16:04.2 after going through 800 meters in 2:17.1 and 3.5K in 11:12.0, making him the top non-UConn finisher behind Joseph DeLuise (15:44.4) and Christian Menounos (15:54.1). Senior Dominic Tartarelli was next as the second scorer in 7th place at 16:16.8, averaging 5:14.4 per mile. Freshman Hayden Burke made an immediate impact in his collegiate debut, finishing 8th in 16:20.0 to score third for Southern. Fellow freshman Dominic Lombardo followed in 9th at 16:24.9, and freshman Breckin Burke closed out the scoring five in 11th at 16:30.0.
That gave Southern three freshmen in its top five. Senior Ryan Gagne was the sixth man in 14th overall at 16:32.9, and freshman Santiago Rodriguez was the seventh man in 20th at 16:52.4. Additional Owls included freshman Landon Pelletier in 17:02.5, freshman Jaxson Koczur in 17:09.5, and junior John Glidden in 17:09.9. That 1-5 spread of just 25.8 seconds from Sallum (16:04.2) to Breckin Burke (16:30.0) was key to the low team score, with Gagne just two seconds further back.
Behind the scorers, Southern showed its depth: Ryan Gagne — 16:32.9 (6th), Santiago Rodriguez — 16:52.4 (7th), Landon Pelletier — 17:02.5, Jaxson Koczur, — 17:09.5, and John Glidden, — 17:09.9, rounded out the Owls' field. T
Compared to 2025 when Southern won with 57 points and three top-10 finishes, this year was faster and tighter. The 1-5 spread was 25.8 seconds (16:04.2 to 16:30.0), improved from 49 seconds last year that USTFCCCA noted in Week 1 regional rankings. Gagne sat just two seconds off that pack at 16:32.9. Sallum's middle segment of 8:54.9 from 800m to 3.5K and Tartarelli's 8:55.0 show the Owls didn't fade after aggressive starts. Finishing 38-35 against a DI UConn squad that went 1-2 individually is a strong early-season signal for the East Region, and with four freshmen in the top seven at Hartford, Southern looks built to move up quickly as the distance stretches to 8K.
Southern is back in action on Saturday, Sept. 19 at the UMass Dartmouth Invitational.
