Seahawks take third in CCC, place three on all-conference team
BRISTOL, R.I. – Senior Olivia Owen (Weymouth, Mass.) and sophomores Cate Norton (Sandy Hook, Conn.) and Christina Moran (Oceanside, N.Y.) led Salve Regina to a third-place finish in the Commonwealth Coast Conference Cross Country Championship on Saturday.
Owen raced to a career-best performance and a runner-up finish in the meet, crossing the finish line at 23:12.8, an improvement of 28 seconds over her previous best at 6,000 meters. The captain surged into second place on the opening loop of the trails at Colt State Park and held her spot for the rest of the way.
Norton and Moran also improved on their personal-best performances at the championship distance, finishing at 23:28.5 and 23:48.3. The race marked an improvement of 1 minute, 21 seconds for Norton, and 21 seconds for Moran. Both earned a spot on the All-Commonwealth Coast Conference Team, which recognizes the top 15 runners in the championship race.
Junior captain Sydney DeCesare (Johnston, R.I.) ran fourth for Salve Regina, also with a personal-best time. DeCesare crossed the finish line at 24:46.7, an improvement of 10 seconds over her previous mark at 6,000 meters. Senior captain Cianna Lynch (Cranston, R.I.) completed the scoring for the Seahawks.
Roger Williams senior Sarah Mawdsley captured the individual title, finishing at 22:31.5 and leading the Hawks to a dramatic, one-point win over the University of New England. The two teams waged a back-and-forth battle in the trails. At an unofficial split taken after the harriers completed the first of the loops in the woods, UNE held a 31-32 advantage over Roger Williams, with Salve Regina running third at 66.
The Hawks pulled ahead on the final loop, with Mawdsley, Grace Depalma and Hannah Kaplan mounting a 1-4-6 finish. Danielle Jewell was the top scorer for the Nor'easters, finishing third. The UNE pack was not far behind, at 8-9-10-11. Siobhan Mitchell (12) and Amanda Naylor (17) closed the scoring for the Hawks.
When the scores were tallied, it was Roger Williams first with 40 points, and UNE second with 41. Salve Regina finished third with 63.
The Salve Regina performances included:
2. Olivia Owen – 23:12.8
5. Cate Norton – 23:28.5
13. Christina Moran – 23:48.3
18. Sydney DeCesare – 24:46.7
25. Cianna Lynch – 25:10.2
29. Meredith Casey – 25:23.0
30. Kat Bruce – 25:23.6
36. Paige McDade – 26:09.7
41. Jenna French – 26:22.1
42. Fran Moore – 26:24.3
45. Emma Cote – 26:34.6
49. Taryn Terracino – 26:50.0
61. Rachel Sandri – 27:24.4
67. Morgan Stewart – 27:31.3
77. Amanda Brosnan – 29:00.2
79. Jillian LeBeau – 29:09.0
83. Kelsea Kidney – 29:45.9
85. Grace Vargo-Willeford – 31:24.9
There were 98 runners in the field.
The Seahawk scorers combined for a team time of 2 hours, 26 seconds, an average of 24:05 per runner. That mark stands as the seventh-fastest aggregate time in program history. It is also the team's second-fastest performance of all time at Colt State Park.
Owen, Norton and Moran all improved their standing on the program's all-time performance list for 6,000 meters. Owen is now the fourth-fastest individual in team history. (Only Amy Irving '17, Victoria Varone '17 and Olivia Wilson '18 have run faster.) Her time stands as the eighth-fastest ever run for Salve Regina. Norton's performance ranks among the top 20 of all time, while Moran's is just outside the top 30.
Salve Regina will field a lineup in the USA Track & Field New England Open Cross Country Championship on Sunday, Nov. 10, in Boston. The team's varsity regulars return to action on Saturday, Nov. 16, in the NCAA Division III New England Regional Championship at Bowdoin College.
