Strock and Stewart Take Top Spots at IC4A/ECAC Championships

Saturday, November 21

Bronx, N.Y.

10 a.m.

James Madison University

ECAC Championship

Strock and Stewart Take Top Spots at IC4A/ECAC Championships

11/21/2015 4:21:00 PM | Cross Country

RESULTS

BRONX, N.Y. - Junior Carol Strock and senior Kathleen Stewart respectively finished first and second Saturday morning in Van Cortlandt Park to lead James Madison cross country to a second-place team finish at the 2015 IC4A/Eastern College Athletic Conference Championships.

Completing the women's 5k race in 17:42.3, Strock set a career best, finishing first out of 80 runners. She recorded a then-personal-best 18:25.6 in last year's ECAC Championships. The Mechanicsburg, Pa. native has finished in the top-two for the Dukes in every race this season.

Following her All-CAA and All-Region efforts over the past two weeks, Stewart came in just behind Strock in second place with a time of 17:43.6. After missing the ECAC Championships and the first three races of the 2015 season, Stewart has also finished top-two for the Dukes in every race since returning from an injury.

Giving JMU its third top-10 finisher on the day, junior Tessa Mundell crossed the finish line in seventh with a time of 18:11.1. Mundell improved on last year's outing in which she led the Dukes with a ninth-place individual finish.

Rounding out the Dukes' scoring on the day were sophomore Erica Gray, who finished 26th (21st scoring) with a time of 19:10.4 and freshman Erin Saunders, who placed 29th (24th scoring) thanks to a time of 19:18.1.

Columbia won the eight-team race behind five top-10 finishers. Between Columbia and James Madison, eight of the top 10 runners came from two schools. Behind JMU was Iona (3rd), Saint Joseph's (4th), Rider (5th), George Mason (6th), Delaware (7th) and Princeton (8th).

In the final race of the 2015 season, four more runners competed for Madison as well. Junior Jenna Flickinger and freshman Jackie O'Shea completed the course with respective 49th and 50th place finishes of 19:56.2 and 19:57.9.

Sophomore Angelique DeMeo (57th) ran to a time of 20:18.3 while sophomore Nora Raher (67th) completed the Dukes' results for the day with a time of 21:02.9.

Overall, the race marked the third time JMU has earned a runner-up finish or better as a team this season after achieving it only four times in the last two years combined.

QUOTING COACH RINKER
"Carol and Kathleen looked and ran great today," said head coach Dave Rinker. "They got to the front, controlled the race through the hills and then powered away. I thought Tessa ran a really tough race today as well. She got into that lead pack and raced as hard as she could."

NOTEWORTHY
In the last four years, the Dukes have earned either first or second place at the ECAC Championships three times including a first-place finish in 2012. JMU owned the top individual runner and three top-10 runners that year as well.

LOOKING AHEAD
Saturday's meet was the final race of the 2015 season. Stay connected for a final Coach's Show on which Coach Rinker will share his thoughts on the ECAC Championships and the season as a whole.