There was predictable triumph for the Irish that competed at the Northeast Regional race on a blustery Boston day at Franklin Park. The men's race saw Mick Byrne's Iona College Gaels win the team title and Ray Treacy's Providence College Friars team earning top honours in the women's competition.

The coaches realised the most demanding victory to earn is the one you are expected to attain. The Iona men and Providence women entered the meet as favourites also making them targets for teams hoping to dethrone them. This tale of two apparently unrelated teams shared a subplot on their sojourn to qualifying for the NCAA Championships. In addition to the obvious fact that both coaches came from Ireland and attended Providence College together, they played a similar game of poker in today's competition. It was essential that their teams qualified for the championships but it was equally important to have them arrive at this accomplishment with the least amount of effort and pain. In ten short days, an identical test of strength, this time against the best of American colleges will greet them in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The coaches achieved the foremost and fundamental formality of securing a spot on the starting line amongst the best. Despite their superb attempts all season to mask the talent of their frontrunners, they must now be considered contenders for a spot atop the rostrum.

In the men's race, Iona's Richard Kiplagat was content to lead the parade of more than 200 runners. He could control the pace, keep his teammates close and most importantly stay out of trouble of spiked shoe and hidden holes on the rock-hard terrain.

After several similar laps, Kiplagat, from Kenya effortlessly pulled away from his closest rival and went on to a relaxed six-second win. To those that view his race in the sterile environment of the results page on the Internet, he ran a respectable sub 30-minute, 10-kilometre race - noteworthy, but not imposing. That assessment would be anything but the truth but I'll reveal no more, after all, Coach Byrne doesn't want anyone else to know! Iona won the team title with 58 points with Providence in 2nd with 73 points, automatically qualifying for the NCAA Championships.

In the women's race, the Providence pair of Kim Smith (Auckland, New Zealand) and Sligo's Mary Cullen annihilated the field in a fearsome display of controlled strength. Just as they did at the Penn State Invitational a month ago, the twosome wasted no time taking a lead they would never relinquish. Smith who appeared both tranquil and tenacious ran 20.23 for 6-kilometres. Cullen, who unlike Smith was only a wee bit winded ran a notable 20.31, 24 seconds clear of 3rd place finisher Caitlin Hickin of Columbia.

Ray Treacy's Providence women finished 1st with 49 points, followed by Columbia with 62 points. Andy Ronan's Stony Brook women's team finished 9th with 373 points with Iona in 10th with 377 points.

Iona qualified their first woman to the NCAA Championships as Emmily Chelanga, from Kenya placed 5th in 21.10.

The top Irish finisher in the men's race was Iona's Mark Smyth (Co Sligo) who 5th in 30.19 followed by teammate Sean Connolly (Tallaght, Co Dublin) placing 19th in 30.56, Providence's Patrick Guidera (24th, 31.03) and St. Malachy's Joe McAlister who had a rare off-day placing 91st in 32.36.

Mary Cullen's second place led the Irish in the women's race followed by a brilliant performance by first-year Iona Gael Michelle Gallagher (Dundrum South Dublin) who ran 21.39 for 14th place. Gallagher who only turned 18 a month ago narrowly missed qualifying as an individual. Providence College junior Deirdre Byrne from Wicklow placed 15th in 21.43 with Limerick's Mairead O'Callaghan (Harvard) finishing 38th in 22.22.