There will be some familiar faces in new places as the 2015 Massachusetts Maritime men’s cross country season begins, but the same commitment to excellence in competition and in the classroom that have made the Buccaneers one of the region’s top programs remains the same.  Head Coach Chris Slattery has assumed the reins of leadership from longtime mentor Chris Ryan after serving as an assistant for the last three seasons, and he is looking to make another run to the top of the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference mountain.

Ryan’s leadership played a major role in the program’s development over the last two decades, and Slattery will be looking for leadership amongst his ranks from a pair of veterans in senior Anthony DeTommaso (Weymouth, Mass./Weymouth) and junior Jake MacVarish (Braintree, Mass./Norfolk Aggie), who will serve as Massachusetts Maritime’s co-captains this fall.  Slattery says the duo “has a veteran presence that commands respect and emulation, and they will continue to set the high standards of excellence that this program embodies.  They have high expectations of themselves and their teammates to be leaders in every aspect, both in and out of competition.”

MacVarish has enjoyed an outstanding first two seasons, as he has been the Buccaneers’ top performer in 16 of his first 17 collegiate races, garnering a total of five combined MASCAC Runner and Rookie of the Week accolades and leading his squad to last year’s team title at the Travis Fuller Invitational.  Sophomores Robby Galvin (Woburn, Mass./Woburn) and Chris MacKay (Bethany, Conn./Amity Regional) placed consistently as Massachusetts Maritime’s second and third runners across the line throughout last fall, with Galvin taking MASCAC Rookie of the Week honors after a second place performance in the Fuller Invitational, while DeTommaso and sophomore Ryan McNeal (Canton, Ga./Sequoyah) round out Slattery’s top five with experience and proven results.

Junior Connor Rosenberg (Brooklyn, Conn./Woodstock Academy), along with sophomores Josh Mattie (Pembroke, Mass./Pembroke), Samuel Theriault (Hampstead, N.C./Topsail), Jake Clougher (Sandwich, Mass./Pope John Paul II), Joe Eastman (Hanover, Mass./Hanover), Richard Langell (Georgetown, Mass./Georgetown), Tom Pelletier (Bradford, Mass./Central Catholic) and Tobias Way (Pocasset, Mass./Sturgis), lends an additional veteran presence for Slattery’s crew this season, while freshmen Jonathan Bernardi (Longmeadow, Mass./Longmeadow), Nathaniel Decker (Bellbrook, Ohio/Bedford), Peter Lowry (Mount Pleasant, S.C./Wando), James Marasi (Feeding Hills, Mass./St. Mary’s Parish) and Ryan Nordstrom (Walpole, Mass./Walpole) will all be vying to make contributions during their inaugural collegiate campaigns.

Massachusetts Maritime begins the Chris Slattery era on Saturday, September 5^th when the Buccaneers host the 11^th Annual Lt. Travis J. Fuller Invitational alongside Cape Cod Canal beginning at 10:30 a.m. EDT.