Seton Hall University
Asics-Embry Riddle Classic
Rutkowski Leads WXC to 2nd-Place Finish
9/27/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. - Seton Hall freshman Christiana Rutkowski (Middletown, N.J.) added yet another stellar performance to her breakout campaign on Sunday, crossing the line as the top collegiate finisher at the 5K ASICS Embry-Riddle Classic in Daytona Beach.
Rutkowski ranked second out of 84 female entrants overall, finishing behind only Embry-Riddle alumna Ellie Staker with a time of 19:08.44 that out-paced the closest collegiate competitor by nearly 14 seconds. The Middletown native has also now led The Hall in all four meets of her young career.
Four more Pirates ranked among the top-20 overall as the Seton Hall women collected a second-place finish with 50 points. Stetson claimed the team championship with a collective score of 32.
Junior Amanda Quaglia (Reading, Pa.) joined Rutkowski in the top-10, posting a final mark of 20:13.50 for her fourth-consecutive scoring time. Quaglia was followed to the line by teammates Desyre Blackburn (Aloha, Ore.) and Mary Migton (Ledgewood, N.J.) who reached the line in quick succession.
Blackburn recorded a time of 20:29.16 to extend her individual scoring streak to 13 by placing third on the squad and 11th overall while after sitting out the Delaware Invitational, Migton returned to rank fourth on the team with a 20:29.66 effort.
Also adding her fourth scoring time of the campaign was freshman Bailey Seach (Winston Salem, N.C.) who clocked in at 21:02.43 to take 20th-place.
Rutkowski, Quaglia, Blackburn, Migton and Seach have been a model of consistency for The Hall in the early part of the season, combining to comprise the entire scoring group in all three meets in which they have competed together.
Freshman Emily Johnson (Wildwood Crest, N.J.) stepped up to place second on the team in Migton's absence at Delaware and on Saturday, she added another top-30 time for head coach John Moon's group by completing the course in 21:43.80.
Fellow newcomer Emily Curran (Wakefield, Mass.) ranked seventh on the squad for the third time this season, turning in a 40th-place time of 22:14.32 and finishing one spot ahead of teammate Bri Miller (Bayonne, N.J.) who came across less than two seconds later (22:16.15).
Through four outings, the Seton Hall women now hold one team victory, a landmark one at the 5K St. John's/Hofstra Fall Festival, and two runner-up finishes.
The Hall will receive another weekend off from competition before traveling to the famed Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx for the Metropolitan Championships, the first of four championship meets on the schedule this fall.
