Irving smashes 6K record, paces Seahawks at Connecticut College

WATERFORD, Conn. – Junior Amy Irving (Bohemia, N.Y.) shattered the Salve Regina University record for 6,000 meters on Saturday, leading the Seahawks to a record-setting day in the Connecticut College Invitational at Harkness State Park.

Irving finished inside the top 30 in an elite field of 300 runners that included six teams with regional and national rankings, laying the groundwork for Salve Regina to set a new school record for combined team time at 6K.

The junior battled with the frontrunners during the first third of the race, setting a pace that saw the leaders reach 2,000 meters in just under seven minutes. Irving went on to finish in 22:39.1, eclipsing the previous school record - 23:19, set by Aubrey Palmquist in 2012 – by 39 seconds.

Senior captain Shannon Holden (Hingham, Mass.), junior captain Victoria Varone (Providence, R.I.), junior Taylor Ricker (Rocky Point, N.Y.) and senior Joelle Ross (Simsbury, Conn.) teamed with Irving to set a new combined team time record of 1:59:25.6, beating the previous mark – also established in 2012 – by 25 seconds.

Holden crossed the finish line at 23:45.3, with Varone not far behind at 24:06.8. Ricker finished at 24:21.1 and Ross finished at 24:33.3 to round out the scoring effort. The performances marked personal bests for Holden and Ricker and the fastest 6K for Ross since 2012.

"This was a spectacular effort against a high quality field. I'm proud to see Amy make her mark on the all-time list at 6K, and I am impressed that this particular group of scorers performed so well and set a new record of their own," said head coach Rob McGuinness. "There were personal bests throughout the lineup today. The hard work is starting to pay off."

Senior captain Jackie Ofria (Manchester, Conn.) ran at No. 6 for the Seahawks, crossing the finish line in a personal-best time of 24:37.1. Sophomore Olivia Wilson (Bethel, Conn.) ran at No. 7, also with a personal best at 24:40.8. Junior Alannah O'Rourke (Rockville Centre, N.Y.), senior Rachel Pyne (Foxboro, Mass.) and senior Tori Maxson (Old Saybrook, Conn.) all improved their career marks at 6K.

Additional Salve Regina finishers included:

Junior Alannah O'Rourke (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) – 25:28.8
Senior Aubrey Palmquist (Bristol, Conn.) – 25:43.8
Sophomore Alexa Cipkas (Granby, Conn.) – 25:44.6
Senior Lea Cure (Altamont, N.Y.) – 26:21.0
Junior Jessica Graham (Lowell, Mass.) – 26:31.1
Senior Rachel Pyne (Foxboro, Mass.) – 26:48.6
Freshman Alley Rogers (Alton, N.H.) – 27:11.1
Freshman Molly Kittler (Pittsfield, Mass.) – 27:22.9
Senior Tori Maxson (Old Saybrook, Conn.) – 28:14.6
Freshman Cea Lacouture (York, Maine) – 30:36.8

MIT, ranked No. 2 in New England and No. 4 in the nation in the most recent USTFCCCA Division III cross country rankings, won the meet with a team score of 62. The Engineers placed four scorers inside the top 15, and junior Maryann Gong won the individual title in 21:31.3. Tufts, ranked No. 2 in New England and No. 3 in the nation, finished second with 67 points.

Keene State, ranked No. 7 in New England and No. 31 in the nation, was third with 108 points, while Carleton College of Minnesota, ranked No. 1 in the Central Region and No. 11 in the nation was fourth with 111. Ranked teams among the top 10 also included SUNY-Oneonta (fifth, 119 points) and Brandeis (sixth, 138 points). Salve Regina finished 12th of 25 with a team score of 374.

The Seahawks will return to action on October 31 at the CCC Championship.