Posted: Aug 30, 2013

Irving, Varone set pace at Mayflower Kickoff

Freshman Amy Irving finished first in the women's 5000 meter race of the Mayflower Kickoff in Henniker, N.H.; she was followed four seconds later by classmate and teammate Victoria Varone.

HENNIKER, N.H. - Salve Regina freshmen Amy Irving (Bohemia, N.Y.) and Victoria Varone (Providence, R.I.) claimed the top two spots in their collegiate racing debut, and the Seahawks placed four runners in the top 10 en route to a win at the Mayflower Kickoff Invitational at New England College.

Irving won the race outright, covering the challenging 5K road and trail course in 19:28. Varone was not far behind, crossing the finish line in 19:32. Senior Ema Waldschmidt (Verbank, N.Y.) was fourth (20:08), sophomore Aubrey Palmquist (Bristol, Conn.) was eighth (20:22) and freshman Jessica Graham (Lowell, Mass.) was 11th (20:41) to round out Salve's scoring five. Freshman Andrea Ricci (Ashford, Conn.) and sophomore Rachel Gedansky (Tolland, Conn.) were the Seahawks' sixth and seventh runners.

Salve Regina claimed the team title with 26 points. Defending champion Husson University was second with 79 and Colby-Sawyer College was third with 82. The victory marks Salve Regina's first cross country invitational championship in nearly two years.

Other Salve Regina finishers included:
Freshman Alannah O'Rourke (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) - 21:07
Senior Danielle Schioppo (North Haven, Conn.) - 21:09
Sophomore Jackie Ofria (Manchester, Conn.) - 21:37
Freshman Taylor Ricker (Rocky Point, N.Y.) - 21:38
Senior Kayley Ryan (Portland, Conn.) - 21:40
Freshman Nicole Schafer (Manorville, N.Y.) - 21:47
Sophomore Joelle Ross (Simsbury, Conn.) - 21:57
Sophomore Shannon Holden (Hingham, Mass.) - 22:17
Freshman Samantha Gisonni (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.) - 22:47
Sophomore Megan Sylvia (Westerly, R.I.) - 23:30
Junior Ashley Donelan (Upton, Mass.) - 23:38
Sophomore Lea Cure (Altamont, N.Y.) - 23:51
Freshman Sarah Valenti (Seymour, Conn.) - 23:59
Freshman Alison Walby (Farmingdale, N.J.) - 24:00
Senior Sabrina Parisi (Gloucester, Mass.) - 24:19
Sophomore Rachel Pyne (Foxboro, Mass.) - 24:35
Sophomore Victoria Maxson (Old Saybrook, Conn.) - 24:47
Sophomore Grace Mills (Groton, Conn.) - 25:17
Sophomore Samantha MacCallum (Northwood, N.H.) - 25:39
Sophomore Amy Piccicacco (Point Pleasant, N.J.) - 26:23
Sophomore Carlie Currier (East Granby, Conn.) - 26:54

Click here to view results of the women's race via coolrunning.com.

The Seahawks return to action on Saturday, Sept. 7 at the Trinity Invitational in Manchester, Conn.

Courtesy of Rob McGuinness

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