Top-Five Finish for Ashleigh Kelley Leads Pride at Smith Invite
NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – Ashleigh Kelley (Stoneham, Mass.) finished in the top five for the second consecutive year at the Smith College Invitational, leading the Regis College cross country team Saturday morning in its second competition of the season.
Kelley crossed the finish line in fourth place with a five-kilometer time of 19:41.8, over 20 seconds quicker than the fifth-place mark she posted at this event last year. Averaging 6:20.4 per mile, she ended up just 23 seconds behind race winner Laurel Kruger of Smith.
Erin Kelley (Stoneham, Mass.) finished in 14th place overall with a time of 20:36.3, 11.5 seconds faster than her time from last year. Madelyn Klein (Framingham, Mass.) was the next Regis competitor to complete the course with a time of 22:42.1, followed by Libby Parker (Bow, N.H.) with a time of 24:13.8.
Elizabeth Stevenson (Scituate, Mass.) finished the race in 24:32.6, followed by Annabelle Jean-Philippe (Randolph, Mass.) in 24:54.8, over two minutes faster than her time here in 2021. Jonnie Charest (Methuen, Mass.) posted a time of 25:52.9, and Katie Kelley (Stoneham, Mass.) finished in 26:20.7.
As a team, the women finished in fifth place with 128 points, ahead of Salve Regina and Emerson. Smith College placed five runners within the top eight to cruise to the team title.
For the men, Benjamin Happenny (Woonsocket, R.I.) was Regis' top finisher once again, completing the five-kilometer course in 18:48.5, just ahead of Zach Sigman (Buffalo, N.Y.) with a time of 19:09.9. Michael Carroll (Lynn, Mass.) posted a time of 22:30.5, and Chris Margiatto (Suffield, Conn.), competing in his first collegiate cross country meet, crossed the finish line with a time of 23:53.1.
The Regis College cross country team heads to Dartmouth, Mass., for the UMass Dartmouth Invitational next Saturday, Sept. 17, at the Robert Dowd Cross Country Course. The men's race is scheduled to start at 11:15 a.m., followed by the women's race at 12 p.m.