LeDuc qualifies for NCAA meet; Benedetti leads SFU in scoring

Michael LeDuc

NEW LONDON, Conn.—Canton’s Michael LeDuc, a junior at Connecticut College has qualified for the 2013 NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championship in the 5,000 meters. LeDuc will be seeded sixth in his event on March 8-9 in Naperville, Illinois.

LeDuc earned his seed with a school-record time of 14:28.61 when he won the 5,000 meters at the Tufts University Invitational.

He earned a piece of another school record at the New England championship meet at Boston University in February. LeDuc ran the anchor leg for Connecticut College’s distance medley relay team that finished with a record time of 10:05.08.

LeDuc, who is majoring in botany, earned All-American honors in cross country this past fall by finishing 13th at the NCAA Division III championship meet – the highest ever finish for a Connecticut College runner at the national meet.

He also earned All-American honors at the 2012 NCAA Division III outdoor track and field championship meet taking fourth in the 3,000 steeplechase with a school record time of 8:59.54. He earned All-American honors in the steeplechase in 2011 with a sixth place finish.

Benedetti is leading scorer for St. Francis

BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The St. Francis (N.Y.) women’s basketball team will be the seventh seed in the upcoming Northeast Conference tournament after losing to Quinnipiac, 73-54 in the regular season finale for both teams on Monday.

Canton sophomore Sarah Benedetti scored 19 points to lead the Terriers (11-18, 8-10 NEC), who dropped their fourth straight game. Benedetti was 5-of-9 from three-point range. St. Francis will face No. 2 seed Sacred Heart University on Sunday in the NEC quarterfinals.

Benedetti is St. Francis’ leading scorer, averaging 11.7 points a game. She is the team’s leading three-point shooter with 76 on the season. She is also averaging 4.4 rebound per game and is fourth on the team in steals with 32.