Gamecocks Finish 15th in 61st Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational Gold Division

Sept. 30, 2016

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – South Carolina’s runners tallied their best times in college almost across the board in a 15th-place showing at the 61st annual Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational on the Burke Golf Course.

Competing in the Gold Division 5K, the Gamecocks ranked 15th in the field of 28, a solid showing in the first crowded field of the year. Senior Mary Reiser led the team for the third time this season, finishing 35th with a time of 17:54.3, the second time she’s broken 18 minutes in a 5K at South Carolina. Six of her teammates posted collegiate best times, including two of her junior teammates running near home. Monica York (71st, 18:17.9) and Allie Sprague (80th, 18:24.1) both improved their best time, by 25 and 41 seconds, respectively, running just across the border from their home state of Illinois.

Freshman Anna Kathryn Stoddard continued her stellar rookie campaign, improving her time by 23 seconds while finishing 84th overall. Sophomore Allison Mueller shaved her time to 18:34.1, crossing the line in 100th position. Redshirt junior Martha McCoy posted her best time since her freshman year, ranking 108th with an 18:40.5 timing. Freshmen Emily Crounse (120th, 18:48.9) and Leah Ford (153rd, 19:06.6) both posted personal bests as well.

“I’m very pleased with the team’s performance today,” said Gamecock assistant track coach for distance Andrew Allden. “We had a lot of PRs and lots of runners solidly in the 18s. This course is fast, but fair and a true showing. Mary (Reiser) got out aggressively and ran with the top group early but struggled in the last mile. She has more to come. That experience will be good for her heading into the postseason. Monica York really got back into the lineup in a big way. That was good to see.”

In the Women’s Open 5K, junior Sarah Taylor broke 19 minutes for the first time as a Gamecock, finishing 56th with her 18:59.7 clocking. Freshman Sarah-Sims McGrath lopped 23 seconds off her top time this year with her 68th-place finish. Senior Kayla Scott continued her improvement in the Garnet and Black, ranking 71st with her time of 19:20.5.

South Carolina hosts the Gamecock Invitational on Tuesday afternoon at the Sandhill REC course. The women’s two-mile race begins at 5:30 p.m.