Pack propels Salve Regina to victory at Pop Crowell Invitational

WENHAM, Mass. – The strength, for the Salve Regina women's cross country team, is in its pack. The Seahawks placed their entire varsity lineup in the top 15 – claiming seven of nine consecutive spots – to eke out a victory in the Pop Crowell Invitational at Gordon College on Saturday.

Senior Cate Norton (Sandy Hook, Conn.), freshman Bre Shipman (New Caanan, Conn.) and sophomore Heather McKee (Churchton, Md.) finished sixth, seventh and eighth in the field of 55 runners to lead the way for Salve Regina. Senior Christina Moran (Oceanside, N.Y.) and freshman Delaney Marek (Northampton, Mass.) completed the scoring, while sophomores Lindsey Sirois (Washington Twp., N.J.) and Kaelyn Fidrocki (Weymouth, Mass.) provided valuable displacement points.

The Seahawks tallied a team score of 42, finishing just ahead of Gordon College (44) and Emerson College (45). Wentworth Institute of Technology (108) placed fourth. Three other teams – New England College, Eastern Nazarene College and NHTI – were represented in the meet, but did not have enough runners to score.

Gordon sophomore Rachel Brennan raced to a commanding individual victory, crossing the finish line in 23:18.5 and setting a new record on the 6,000-meter course. Brennan finished 58 seconds ahead of the next closest competitor, who happened to be her teammate, freshman Carolyn Day. Gordon senior Abigail Baier finished fifth, setting up another scoring showdown with the Seahawks.

The Salve Regina lineup looked much as it did in previous weeks, with Norton and Shipman setting the pace and McKee and Moran not far behind. Marek moved into the No. 5 spot in the second half of the race. Sirois and Fidrocki finished ahead of the No. 4 runner from Gordon, and Sirois out-kicked the No. 4 runner from Emerson to help seal the win for the Seahawks.

The Seahawks captured an invitational title for the second consecutive week, marking the first time since the fall of 2017 that the team recorded back-to-back victories. Salve Regina last won the Pop Crowell Invitational in 2011.

The meet is named for Ray "Pop" Crowell, who established the cross country program at the former Barrington College in 1962. (Barrington College merged with Gordon College in 1985.) Three Barrington alumni – all of whom competed in the first Pop Crowell Invitational, 50 years ago – served as honorary starters and officials at the meet on Saturday.

Salve Regina finishers included:

6. Cate Norton – 25:11
7. Bre Shipman – 25:14
8. Heather McKee – 25:46
10. Christina Moran – 26:33
11. Delaney Marek – 26:39
12. Lindsey Sirois – 26:39
14. Kaelyn Fidrocki – 26:52
16. Olivia Forbes – 27:03
17. Izabella Kuczorski – 27:12
18. Avery Braccia – 27:17
20. Jenna French – 28:05
21. Bridget Esposito – 28:06
22. Paige McDade – 28:18
23. Sarah Hauptman – 28:27
26. Taryn Terracino – 28:44
29. Emma Cote – 29:03
32. Mia Pastorok – 29:15
33. Maya Baldauf – 29:37
38. Juliana Petronio – 31:25

Salve Regina returns to action on Saturday, October 2 at the Tri-State Invitational hosted by the Community College of Rhode Island.