Oct. 18, 2008
Results | Photo Gallery 
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Navy women's cross country runner Katie Rentz (So./San Diego, Calif.) posted the fastest time of the day to lead the Midshipmen to a convincing 15-48 N-Star win over Army at the USNA Cross Country Course on Saturday morning. The Mids conclude the regular season with a 7-0 record in dual-scored meets, while the Black Knights fell to 0-2 on the year.
Navy has won three-straight Star Meets over Army and improved its all-time advantage over the Black Knights to 14-9, including a 10-3 mark in Annapolis.
The 15-point showing by the Midshipmen tied the lowest score produced against Army in the Star Meet, while their 33-point margin of victory was the largest in series history. Navy delivered a 15-46 win over Army in Annapolis during the 1990 Star Meet.
"Today was the most impressive performance I have seen out of our team in a Star Meet against Army," stated Navy head coach Karen Boyle, who has coached the Mids to all of their N-Star victories in program history. "All the credit goes to our girls. They were able to communicate and stay in a pack throughout the race. I'm so proud of them and to be called coach of this group. They work so well together."
Rentz led a Navy contingent that claimed each of the top-five slots on Saturday and were separated by just a total of 12 seconds. Rentz completed the race in 22:17, the eighth-fastest time in USNA Cross Country Course history. Rookie Jess Palacio (Fr./Sun Valley, Nev.) immediately followed in second place with a time of 22:19, the ninth-best clocking in course history.
Erica Ziel (Jr./Saginaw, Mich.) finished third with a time of 22:24, followed by teammates Marina McGrail (Fr./Manchester, Vt.) and Lexa Gass (Jr./Crescent, Pa.) in fourth and fifth place with 22:26 and 22:29 showings, respectively.
After Army's Ashley Morgan placed sixth, Navy had three-consecutive runners cross the finish line. Maureen Dooley (Sr./Durham, Conn.) finished in 22:46 for seventh place, followed by Kristine Mun's (Fr./Nanuet, N.Y.) eighth-place clocking of 22:47 and Anna Bernal's (Jr./Bonaire, Ga.) ninth-place time of 23:10.
Navy, the preseason favorite to win the Patriot League, will look to carry its momentum to the Patriot League Championship on Saturday, Nov. 1, at the Lehigh Cross Country Course in Bethlehem, Pa.
"Today's performance will hopefully serve as an impetus for the league championship," stated Boyle. "It will most likely be an extremely competitive race."
