BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Rutgers men's and women's cross country closed out the season at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regionals on Friday, Nov. 12 on the Goodman Campus Course. The women posted an 11th-place showing behind a pair of top-50 finishes, while the men's team took 19th overall. Senior
Olympia Martin earned the Scarlet Knights their best finish as she placed 36th overall in a field of 193 runners.
"The men and women ran tough in messy conditions," said head coach
Matthew Jelley. "Both teams made solid progress over the course of the season and laid a solid foundation to help propel the program to new heights."
The 11th-place finish by the women's team was the second-best performance all time for Rutgers, behind the 10th-place team effort in 2014.
It was the highest career finish for Martin, who took 36th with a time of 21:29.0. Freshman
Alex Carlson added the second top-50 finish as she took 43rd in 21:40.0 to cap off a standout freshman campaign.
Michelle Coyotl-Varela and
Isabella Godish each ran personal bests as Coyotl-Varela finished 57th in a time of 22:00.6, followed by Godish in 79th with a time of 22:28.7.
Kiera Nealon rounded out the scoring for RU as she placed 101st in a time of 22:55.0. Also competing for the Scarlet Knights were
Kaitlyn Bragen (117th; 23:08.6) and
Brooke Riedy (123rd; 23:13.3).
Leading the pack on the men's side was
Patrick Walsh, who finished 81st in 32:52.8.
Ryan Mitchell ran to his best NCAA Regional finish as he took 93rd in 33:08.1.
Billy Hill and
Will Berger finished neck and neck with Hill taking a slight edge in 33:40.0 to finish 111th, while Berger took 112th in 33:41.8. Adding to the Scarlet Knights scoring total was
Christopher Hill who was running his first career 10k with a time of 34:29.6 to place 133rd. Also competing for Rutgers was
Dan Pedretti, who made his 10k debut (145th; 34:59.5), followed by Nick Hutchinson (148th; 35:06.0).
RUTGERS RESULTS
Women's 6K
36.
Olympia Martin – 21:29.0
43.
Alex Carlson – 21:40.0
57.
Michelle Coyotl-Varela – 22:00.6
79.
Isabella Godish – 22:28.7
101.
Kiera Nealon – 22:55.0
(117.)
Kaitlyn Bragen – 23:08.6
(123.)
Brooke Riedy – 23:13.3
Men's 10K
81.
Patrick Walsh – 32:52.8
93.
Ryan Mitchell – 33:08.1
111.
Billy Hill – 33:40.0
112.
Will Berger – 33:41.8
133.
Christopher Hill – 34:29.6
(145.)
Dan Pedretti – 34:59.5
(148.) Nick Hutchison – 35:06.0
