Seahawks tangle with top-ranked teams at Purple Valley Classic

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – Senior Victoria Varone (Providence, R.I.) and freshman Cianna Lynch (Cranston, R.I.) led Salve Regina to a 13th place finish among 23 teams in the Purple Valley Classic on Saturday. The meet, hosted by Williams College, included 11 teams with regional or national standing in the USTFCCCA NCAA Division III Regional Cross Country Rankings.

SUNY Geneseo (No. 1, Atlantic Region; No. 2, National) earned a six-point win over MIT (No. 2, New England Region; No. 5, National) to capture the team championship. Williams College (No. 1, New England; No. 1, National) and Tufts University (No. 3, New England; No. 6, National) took third and fourth. Six of the top 10 teams in New England and nine of the top 35 in the nation were on the course at Mount Greylock Regional High School.

Varone ran in the top spot for the Seahawks for the third consecutive meet, settling inside the top 75 in the opening mile of the race and running steadily on the grass and trail 6K course. She reached the second mile at 12:26 and continued to gain ground into the third mile and the closing kilometer. She finished at 23:46.5, good for 65th place in the field of 273.

Varone's performance is the second-fastest 6K ever run by a Seahawk on the championship layout at Mount Greylock. Only Aubrey Palmquist '16 has run faster, with a 23:31.8 in the 2014 NCAA Division III New England Regional Championship.

"Victoria ran another excellent race for us today. We knew this meet would be a test, given the quality of the competition at the Purple Valley Classic. She was clearly up for the challenge," said head coach Rob McGuinness. "Victoria took full advantage of this competitive opportunity and she continues to demonstrate just how good she is, week after week."

Lynch continued her steady climb up the Seahawks' scoring lineup, moving into the No. 2 spot in just her third collegiate race. The freshman was only 10 seconds behind Varone at the second mile, and maintained a position inside the top 100 throughout the race. She crossed the finish line at 24:15.5. Sophomore Alex Demeo (Burlington, Mass.) was not far behind at 24:33.0.

Junior Olivia Wilson (Bethel, Conn.) and senior Taylor Ricker (Rocky Point, N.Y.) capped the scoring, crossing the line at 24:51.2 and 25:17.5. Freshman Olivia Owen (Weymouth, Mass.) and senior Alexa Cipkas (Granby, Conn.) ran at No. 6 and No. 7, finishing at 26:08.8 and 26:11.9.

Other Salve Regina finishers in the varsity race included:
Senior Alannah O'Rourke (Rockville Center, N.Y.) – 26:40.6
Freshman Rachel Sandri (Marlboro, N.Y.) – 26:41.2
Sophomore Ashley Schafer (Manorville, N.Y.) – 27:28.4
Senior Jessica Graham (Lowell, Mass.) – 27:47.3
Freshman Taylor Maddalena (Pittsfield, Mass.) – 28:15.2
Freshman Ellie Bergeron (North Attleboro, Mass.) – 28:49.6
Freshman Alexa Vargas (Woburn, Mass.) – 31:16.6

In the sub-varsity 5K race, Salve Regina finished third among three scoring teams. Sophomore Molly Kittler (Pittsfield, Mass.) was the top runner for the Seahawks at 23:38.0. Senior Nicole Schafer (Manorville, N.Y.) and freshman Tatiana Mehos (Ridgewood, N.J.) ran in the No. 2 and No. 3 positions, finishing a 24:36.8 and 24:50.7. Juniors Caroline Kelley (Norfolk, Mass.) and Mabelitza Guzman (Waterbury, Conn.) rounded out the scoring at 25:19.7 and 25:30.1.

The Seahawks return to action at the Tri-State Invitational at the Community College of Rhode Island on Saturday, Oct. 1.