Sophomores set the pace for cross country teams :: Paul Nessle and Mary Town will lead the Bonnies at Atlantic 10 Championships

Oct. 29, 2002

ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. - The air was cold but the sky was blue at the start of the St. Bonaventure Cross Country Alumni Invitational this past Saturday. There was a festive air: a green and white tent was set up on McGraw-Jennings Field, baseball's inter-squad scrimmage was on, a rugby game was set and a club field hockey game was starting soon.

The men were first to start. Alums, undergraduates, and Houghton College runners started together. They continued on as a pack until they were out of sight.

The men would not be seen again until 11:15 when the women started. Sophomore Paul Nessle was in the lead pack and gaining fast on Houghton's lead runner. He would eventually finish second at a time of 27:23:58, behind only Chris Buell of Houghton by 17 seconds.

Nessle is a third-generation St. Bonaventure student. He began his college career as a mechanical engineering major at Alfred.

"I didn't enjoy that (mechanical engineering) or my (cross country) coach but I did like accounting," Nessle said. "My dad (Lou) went here, and since he always raved about St. Bona since I was seven years old, it was just natural for me to go here."

Nessle has been running for most of his life. At Corning-Painted Post East High School, he competed in cross country as well as indoor and outdoor track. He was a state qualifier in cross country his senior year, trained as a long distance runner at the Olympic Training Center in Lake Placid, N.Y., and is an Eagle Scout.

"The best thing I ever learned from scouting was work ethic and dedication to whatever you go into," Nessle said, "because if you're dedicated to something, you'll definitely improve on it."

Through St. Bonaventure's six events this fall, Nessle has posted the best time for a Bona runner every time out. Nessle's finished a team-best third out of 101 runners at the LeMoyne Invitational.

Nessle and classmate Mary Town, the top runner on the Bona women's cross-country team, have something in common.

"Setting goals and achieving them through hard work is really rewarding," Town says. "I tried other sports, but I was really no good at any of them. But, when it came to running it was very rewarding for me. All the hard work you put into a race finishing makes it all worth it."

Town, a sociology major, spent last summer on Cape Cod working at a camp as a lifeguard and teaching swimming lessons.

Her senior year at Troy (N.Y.) High School, she was captain of the cross country team, made the second team all-conference, placed fourth at sectionals in the 800 meter run and won the annual Troy Women's Club scholarship.

Town also volunteers for the Special Olympics and coaches kids with disabilities in track events.

Like Nessle, Town has put forth the best time in every event this season. She posted a season-best time 20:58 at the Little Three Invitational.

"She's a strong runner," Nessle said of Town. "During the middle of the race, she has enough just to overpower girls and keep up that pace."

Town testifies to that as she rounds a curve on the St. Bonaventure course on the heels of Houghton's lead runner, Mary Gibson.

At the end of the race, Town is not even out of breath. She finishes in third place. Her teammates later tell her she broke the 21:00 mark for the first time ever.

"They are both excellent student-athletes," said St. Bonaventure coach, Tom Hagen. "I think that they will both get even better next year. They are both top runners this year with the potential to improve. I am excited to have them on the team because they are both hard workers and both extremely positive."