Sara Parkinson - Sr.
Sara Parkinson was named to the America East All Academic Cross Country Team as a result of both her athletic and academic performances. Parkinson earned All-Conference honors at the 2009 America East Cross Country Championships on Oct. 31, when she led the Retrievers across the line and finished sixth overall. An excellent student, the senior has a 3.62 cumulative GPA and is majoring in geography and environmental systems.
The following updates to the site should be coming soon:
- more video previews of the sprints, distance, and jumps
- an updated picture page
- updated schedule page
- Bucknell Bison Open Preview
- Indoor Track Season Preview
The Men’s & Women’s team traveled to the America East Conference Championship in Burlington, VT this past weekend. Leading the way for the women was All Conference performer, Sara Parkinson who finished sixth overall.
Mairin Leahy also stepped up big for the women’s team, scoring as the fourth finisher in her last race.
On the men’s side, Andrew Madison led the way finishing 25th overall. The men’s team struggled through a tough day that had two of their top five battle through five miles with tough injuries. Picking up the slack for the men’s team was Roy Jones who was the fourth scorer, the first time he registered as a scoring member of the team.
Both the men’s & women’s team finished 8th overall. They are looking to get healthy and rebound for the NCAA regional meet two weeks from now at the University of Maryland – Eastern Shore.
This Saturday the UMBC Cross Country teams travel to Burlington, VT for the America East Championships. The women’s race will begin at 11:00 AM followed by the men’s race at 12:00 PM. The race will be taking place at the Catamount Center in nearby Williston, VT.
Prior to the beginning of the season, both the men’s and women’s team were ranked in the pre-season polls:
However, the goals for the team have risen over the course of the season.
The women’s team has risen to number 15 in the Mid-Atlantic Region Poll for the first time since 2001. They have been led by the 1-2 combination of Suzanne Gabriel and Sara Parkinson, who have been alternating leading roles throughout the year. Gabriel is coming off a recent victory at the Princeton Invite, and both are vying for a top 10 position. Running third for the Retrievers has been Keri Wilson who has become a vital part of the equation, and will be looking to score within the top 25. Rounding out the scoring five will be Laura Blevins and Megan Arnold, two freshmen who have been improving throughout the year. Finally, Mairin Leahy is looking to make an impact after a solid performance at the Princeton Invite and a strong two weeks of practice. Overall the women are looking to finish in the top half of the conference for the first time since joining the conference, with their best placing being 7th.
The men have been steadily improving throughout the year. Leading the way the entire year has been Andrew Madison, the fifth year senior will be looking for an all-conference performance by finishing in the top 10. Behind him will be a slew of UMBC athletes including Chris Bowie, Chris Snyder, TJ Cowing, Michael Christmas, and Roy Jones. All of which will be looking to finish within the top 25 in a tightly knit pack. Rounding out the team will be Aristotle Johnson and Josh Day, two freshmen who are looking to stick with the varsity pack as long as possible. Overall the men are looking to finish in the top half of the conference.
The UMBC Women have earned their first regional ranking in recent years, entering the poll at #15 in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Full Polls can be seen here:
http://www.ustfccca.org/assets/rankings/div1/2009-xc/09-d1-wxc-reg-week4.pdf
This weekend the UMBC Cross Country team heads to the Princeton Invite. This will be their last race before the America East Conference meet two weeks from this weekend. The races begin with the Men’s 8k at 10 AM this Saturday. Leading the way will be Andrew Madison, fresh off his 25:02 at Paul Short, he will be looking for the first UMBC runner to go under the 24:50 mark in quite some time. Following him will be a strong group of Chris Bowie, Michael Christmas, and Chris Snyder, who finished within seconds of each other at Paul Short. Freshmen TJ Cowing and Aristotle Johnson, who has had a great two weeks of practice will battle for the last scoring position. On the Women’s side of things, Suzanne Gabriel and Sara Parkinson will be looking to finish in the Top 5 this weekend, each seeking PR’s should the weather cooperate. Following quickly behind will be sophomore Keri Wilson who ran a 2 minute personal best for the 6k at Paul Short. Rounding out the scoring will be freshmen Laura Blevins and Megan Arnold.
This Friday, both the Men’s & Women’s teams will be traveling to Lehigh University to compete in the Paul Short Invitational. The Men’s Team will be competing in the Gold Race at 11PM and the Women’s Team will follow at 11:45 in the Gold Race.
Halfway through the season, Andrew Madison has set the pace for the retrievers, leading them significantly in both races he has competed in. He will be looking for his first sub 25 minute clocking either this weekend or the following at Princeton. The second and third spots on the team have been filled by Chris Bowie and Michael Christmas. The two juniors will be trying to close the gap between them and Andrew, while looking to run in the mid 25 minute range, in order to set themselves up for a good time at the Princeton Invite. Filling out the scoring for the Retrievers has been the group of three freshmen, TJ Cowing, Josh Day, and Aristotle Johnson. TJ and Josh have been in the scoring five in all of their races so far, and are primed for a breakout race. Aristotle, who was being counted on to bring help during the track season, has stepped up to provide support during the cross country season. Chris Snyder will be rounding our the varsity squad as he slowly returns from a foot injury and should breakthrough after two solid weeks of training.
The women’s team continues to make huge advances. One year after being at the bottom of the region, the women have consistently beaten teams that are currently regionally ranked. Sara Parkinson has continued her success from last year, recently finishing in a comparable to the one that made her all-conference. She is looking for a huge race in some of the best competition she will face all year. Following Sara all year has been Suzanne Gabriel who has also reached her levels of performance from the end of last year. This weekend she will be looking for a personal best time in the 6k. Keri Wilson has been the consistent third runner for the Retrievers. Only two years removed from being a consistent 21 minute runner in high school, she has continued to drop her times, recently setting a massive PR in the 5k at the UMES Invite. The rest of the scoring has been filled out by freshmen Laura Blevins and Megan Arnold, both who will be looking to run sub 24 minutes in the 6k, thus giving a scoring five under 23 for the first time in quite a long time. Rounding out the team will be Cortney Crouse and Mairin Leahy, who will both be looking for close to PR times in the 6k after strong, consistent starts to the season.
