PHOTO CREDIT: gorhody.com
The University of Rhode Island’s women’s cross country team fought to tenth place at the Atlantic 10 Championship meet over the weekend, with six runners finishing in the top 100 despite four runners making their championship debut.
The Rams (256 points) were just three points shy of ninth place Duquesne (253 points) and were in eighth place going into the final stretch of the race, but also finished behind Davidson (239 points). Loyola Chicago claimed the crown in their first year in the Atlantic 10, with six of their runners in the top 25.
Sophomore Sofia Piccone was Rhody’s highest finisher in 37th place with a time of 18:17.0. This was an improvement of 55 places for Piccone last year and also became the fifth best finish of any Ram at Pole Green Park, but she was ultimately proud of the team’s progression.
“We finished higher than we did last year and we could have finished ninth or even eighth,” Piccone said. “It just goes to show how much we improved as a team throughout the season.”
Following Piccone was sophomore Erin Hurley, who finished in 50th with a time of 18:32.3, a career best 5K time in her first Atlantic 10 Championship. Fellow sophomore Lindsay Turgeon also set a career best in her championship debut, earning 53rd with a time of 18:34.4.
Junior Daniella Napoli opened her A-10 Championship campaign with a personal best of her own, finishing 64th with a time of 18:43.8.
With so many personal bests and so many runners making their first appearance at the meet, Head Coach Laurie Feit-Melnick saw a lot of positives despite the tenth place finish.
“We just wanted to go and get experience,” Feit-Melnick said. “We had a lot of people run for the first time at the Atlantic 10 Championships and we had a lot of PR’s, I was really proud of our group.”
Senior Hannah O’Connor overcame a shoe malfunction midway through the race to come back from 111th and finish 68th for the Rams with a time of 18:50.2.
The top seven was rounded out by sophomores Corina Vidal (18:55.8) and Molly Sabia (19:12.3) who finished 73rd and 92nd respectively.
Now, the focus turns to the NCAA Regional Championships in the Bronx, New York where seven Rams will be traveling, hoping for a shot at Nationals. Feit-Melnick, as she has all season, stressed the need for experience on big stages like this and valued what the regionals can offer her squad.
“We just want to go and compete and get any experience we can,” Feit-Melnick said. “We have a very young and very focused squad and I just look forward to the future.”
Piccone echoed her coach’s excitement, sharing that the team has big goals for the years to come.
“The goal to be top five at the Atlantic 10 Championships in the next couple of years is definitely still there,” Piccone said. “For now, we just want to keep getting better every day and improving as a team.”
The team will travel to the Empire State for Regionals on Nov. 11 for their final stop of the season as a team.