Palmquist on pace as Seahawks soar to highest regional finish

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – Junior captain Aubrey Palmquist (Bristol, Conn.) led the way as Salve Regina earned its best-ever finish in the NCAA Division III New England Regional Championship on Saturday. The Seahawks finished 18th of 57 scoring teams, improving on the previous program best of 19th place, set in 2003.

Palmquist finished 65th in the field of 387 runners to lead the scoring charge for Salve Regina. Her time of 23:31.8 stands at No. 9 on the university's all-time performance list for 6K and is the fastest finish by a Seahawk on the championship course at Mt. Greylock Regional High School. Palmquist's placement is also the highest regional meet finish by a Salve Regina runner in at least the last 17 years.

"Aubrey ran an amazing race today," said head coach Rob McGuinness. "She continues to make her mark on our performance lists, and she led the team on what turned out to be a landmark day for our program."

Sophomore Amy Irving (Bohemia, N.Y.) ran in the No. 2 position for Salve Regina, finishing just outside the top 100 at 24:18.9 – a personal best for 6K. Freshmen Alexa Cipkas (Granby, Conn.) and Olivia Wilson (Bethel, Conn.) also posted personal-best performances at 24:42.2 and 24:44.8, and sophomore Victoria Varone (Providence, R.I.) rounded out the scoring five at 24:58.9. The lineup of Palmquist, Irving, Cipkas, Wilson and Varone combined for a team time of 2:02:16.6, which ranks at No. 3 on the program's all-time performance list.

"Our scoring five had a tremendous day. To see three personal-best times on a challenging course, at the end of the season, is a real credit to Amy, Alexa and Olivia," McGuinness said. "They peaked at the right time."

Junior Shannon Holden (Hingham, Mass.) and sophomore Alannah O'Rourke (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) ran at No. 6 and No. 7, crossing the finish line at 25:51.0 and 25:59.2.

MIT placed four runners in the top 10 en route to winning the regional championship with a score of 41. Middlebury was second with 65 points and Williams was third with 95. Sarah Quinn of MIT won the individual championship with a time of 21:39.9.

The regional championship meet marks the end of the 2014 cross country campaign for Salve Regina, capping a season in which the Seahawks won two invitationals and set a school record for combined team time for 5K.

"It was a good season, and we finished on a high note," McGuinness said. "All of the contributors from this year's team should be back next fall, so the future looks bright."

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Courtesy of Rob McGuinness