STANDISH, Maine – Emmanuel College topped a 12-team field with 23 points to win the 2015 Runnin' Monks Invitational at Saint Joseph's College on Saturday. The Saints placed five of the top seven runners overall and finished well ahead of runner-up University of New England, which totaled 64 points in the 5K race.
Monks standout Heather Eaton (Lincolnville, Maine) won the Monks' annually hosted event for the second time in her career with a 20:13 effort, 30 seconds faster than runner-up Margaret McCaffrey of Emmanuel. With the win Eaton, who captured the 2012 Runnin' Monks title with a 21:20 effort, is just the second SJC runner – former teammate Amber Dostie '15 being the other – to claim multiple Runnin' Monks individual crowns. A St. Joe's runner has won the Runnin' Monks race in each of the past five seasons.
Individually, Emmanuel's Chloe Pangonis finished third (21:03), Laura Pulito of Maine-Farmington was fourth (21:34) and Saints sophomore Nicole Varca rounded out the top five finishers with a 21:23 performance.
As for team finishes, Maine-Farmington placed third (76 points), Saint Joseph's was fourth (127) and Emerson College finished fifth (140). Wheelock College (159), Lasell College (216), Nichols College (240), Thomas College (255), Johnson State (267), Maine Maritime (287) and Maine-Presque Isle (288) capped the list of competing institutions.
For Saint Joseph's, freshman Sarah Curtin finished ninth (21:51), freshman Maureen Herlihy (Walpole, Mass.) placed 37th (23:21) and first-year Lauren Lecompte (Lewiston, Maine) was 53rd (24:26). Junior Kristina Schelling (Pelham, N.H.) (24:59, 67th), junior Jill Keimach (Scarborough, Maine) (25:45, 81st), junior Marisa Lundy (Merrimac, Mass.) (26:04, 85th) and junior Meghan Fullarton (Windham, Maine) (34:02, 128th) also raced in the Monks' home meet.
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.