Rutgers University
Metropolitan Championships
Metropolitan Champions
Oct 10 | Women's Cross Country
PISCATAWAY, N.J. (October 10, 2014) - Championship season for the Rutgers women's cross country team began with the Scarlet Knights capturing the 2014 Metropolitan Championship and crowning RU's Paige Senatore (Delsea, N.J.) as the individual champion at Van Cortlandt Park on Friday afternoon.
In total, the championship Scarlet Knights had five place in the top 10 and eight post top 20 times in the field of 109 student-athletes racing.
Rutgers, who last brought home the Metropolitan Championship title in 1997, dethroned Columbia, the 16-time defending Metropolitan Champions. Senatore meanwhile becomes the 10th Scarlet Knight to take first at the championships since 1993 and first since fellow teammate Brianna Deming (Webster, N.Y.) crossed the finish line in first back in 2011.
"The women had fantastic performances today! They all improved about one minute each from running on the course at the Fordham Fiasco a month ago, where we won team title as well," said head coach James Robinson."We will set our sights on training more intensely as we set our sights on the Big Ten Cross Country Championships next."
Senatore ended the race in a time of 18:19.4, besting her first place time of 18:58.53 on the 5K course from the Fordham Fiasco in early September and with a 9.3 second lead on Fordham's Brianna Tevnan.
Teammate and senior Allison Payenski (Whitehouse Station, N.J.) was close behind in third with a time 18:35.5 and was followed by two other Scarlet Knights. Freshman Megan Coakley (Tinton Falls, N.J.) finished in a time of 18:37.7 for fourth and Deming, the 2011 champion, posted a time of 18:42.5 for fifth.
Rounding out the top 10 for Rutgers was freshman Alexandra Juzwiak (North Middletown, N.J.) in 10th with her time of 19:02.3.
The Rutgers women's cross country will now set sights on its first Big Ten Championship race set for November 2nd in Iowa City, Iowa.
Metropolitan Cross Country Championship Results
Team Results:
1. Rutgers - 23
2. Fordham - 75
3. Wagner - 135
4. NYU - 139
5. Columbia - 139
6. Seton Hall - 149
7. St. John's - 150
8. Manhattan - 159
9. St. Francis (NY) - 277
10. Farleigh Dickinson - 322
11. LIU - 326
12. St. Peter's - 328
Individual Results
1. Paige Senatore - 18:19.4
3. Allison Payenski - 18:35.5
4. Megan Coakley - 18:37.7
5. Brianna Deming - 18:42.5
10. Alexandra Juzwiak - 19:02.3
13. Kaitlyn Bedard - 19:11.7
14. Julia DeSpirito - 19:16.4
17. Celine Mazzi - 19:20.3
31. Felicia O'Donnell - 19:50.3
36. Nisa Cicitta - 20:04.3
50. Maria Calazans - 20:28.8
63. Kimberly Oppenheim - 20:51.1
Previous Rutgers Metropolitan Cross Country Championships
1993: Jennifer Heggie
1994: Cheryl Keating
1996: Colleen Sunderland
1997: Colleen Sunderland
1998: Colleen Sunderland
2000: Julie Culley
2002: Julie Culley
2006: Allison Caruana
2011: Brianna Deming
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-RU-
