Johnson & Wales University Providence

A three-time cross country All-Stater while at nearby Coventry High School, John Freitas enrolled at JWU in the fall of 1970, and made an immediate impact, as a member of JWU's junior college regional championship team. In his second year, Freitas won the New England AAU three-mile cross country race, then finished tenth at the 1971 NJCAA national championship meet, to help lead the fabled Johnson & Wales team that finished sixth in the country. He was named a junior college All-American and was recognized by Who’s Who in American Junior Colleges.