An uphill climb for Stonehill runner Coriaty

By Jim Fenton, Enterprise staff writer

EASTON— There were times during her first two years at Stonehill College when Kristina Coriaty wondered if she would even have a cross country career.

First, the Brockton resident had her entire freshman season wiped out because of a pair of stress fractures in her left foot.

Then, Coriaty missed all but the final two meets of her sophomore season due to sessamoiditis, the inflammation of a bone at the base of her right big toe, and Iliotibal Band Syndrome in her knee.

“It was really tough,” said the 2005 Brockton High School graduate. “I wanted to run so bad and I couldn't. I was hurt my freshman year, then I got mononucleosis. It was just one thing after another and I was like, 'What am I doing?'

“Then I came back for my sophomore year and I was hurt again and it crushed me again. It was really difficult.”

That rugged start to Coriaty's cross country career at Stonehill has been replaced by some very good times in this, her junior year.

Healthy for a full cross country season for the first time since arriving at the school, Coriaty has emerged as one of the region's top runners.

Coriaty will take part in the NCAA Div. 2 Championships in Joplin, Mo., Saturday after placing third to lead Stonehill to the NCAA Northeast Regional title in New York earlier this month.

It has been a rewarding season for Coriaty after having her cross country career hit roadblock after roadblock.

“If you had told me two years ago that I would be third at the regionals, I would have said that I don't think so,” said Coriaty. “I didn't think I'd run again.

“It's been an amazing season. I'm so excited. I always knew in the back of my head that I could do it, but I just never had the chance until this year.”

Coriaty opened the season by being the top Stonehill finisher at the Fordham Invitational, and she won the Connecticut College Invitational, then placed third when Stonehill won the Northeast-10 Conference championship.

“She went home this summer and really worked,” said Skyhawks coach Karen Boen. “I would be riding around and I would see her all the time out running, doing 50 miles a week.”

Things started to turn for Coriaty during the indoor track season in her sophomore year. After being frustrated in cross country, she was finally healthy enough to start competing again.

Coriaty was third at the NE-10 meet in the 800-meter race last winter and was seventh in New England in the 1,000-meter race, earning all-region honors. In the spring, she was third at the conference meet in the 1,500 meters.

That sent Coriaty into the summer on a high note, and she was able to properly prepare for the cross country season with no health issues to worry about.

'It was,” she said, “the first time I really got to do a lot of mileage without getting hurt. I never got to do steady training in before that. Once things going steady for me, I started to see success. I was finally able to show what I could do in cross country.”

The success has led Coriaty to a trip to Missouri where she'll join six other Skyhawks at the national meet.

Stonehill, located not far from her home, was not one of the schools she was considering as a senior at Brockton High. Coriaty wanted to attend college away from the area, but things changed after a visit to the school.

“My cross country coach in high school (Pat Brennan) signed me up for a tour of Stonehill without me knowing about it,” said Coriaty, who will run the mile and 800 this winter. “I wanted to get away when I went to college. I live like three miles away Stonehill and I wasn't really interested.

“But I was like, 'All right, I'll guess I'll go on the tour, but I'm not going to school there.' Once I got on the tour, I said, 'Ooh, I like this campus.' And once I met the team and Coach Boen, I knew I was coming.”

Coriaty was a sprinter in high school, running cross country only one year for the Boxers. She was part of a Brockton relay team that set the state outdoor record in the 4x200 and won the 4x100 New England outdoor race as a junior.

It was an adjustment going from speed races to cross country, but once Coriaty got rid of the injury bug, she settled in and became Stonehill's leader this fall.

The best season of her career will be capped by running with the nation's best Div. 2 runners.

“I can't wait,” she said. “I've been waiting for this for a long time. I just want to go out there and run a personal best.

“It's going to be a great experience. I'm so thankful every day. Everything seems to be going right now.”