Completed Event: Cross Country at Spider Alumni Open on August 30, 2025 , , 5th of 14
XC
Final
James Madison
at Spider Alumni Open
5th of 14
James Madison University | Official Athletics Site
Saturday, September 10
New Market, Va.
10 a.m.
James Madison University
vs
JMU Invitational
Strock Leads Dukes to Win at JMU Invitational
9/10/2016 2:00:00 PM | Cross Country
NEW MARKET, Va. – Senior Carol Strock used a strong kick on the final stretch to win the individual title and lead James Madison cross country to the team title at the 2016 JMU Invitational 5.2K women's race at the New Market Battlefield Saturday morning.
"It feels really good," Strock said about the victory. "I'm just excited about the team, we've all been training very hard this week."
Strock was neck-and-neck with George Mason's Ciara Donohue coming down the final hill, but once the finish line was in sight she pulled away to cross the finish line first with a time of 19:28.2, a full two seconds ahead of Donohue.
"I definitely got some adrenaline from that," Strock said. "I just tried to stay with her and kick as much as I could. I was very happy with the result."
Junior Nora Raher was in the lead pack for most of the race and registered a strong third-place finish with a time of 19:44.2. Senior Tessa Mundell was on her heels in fourth place, finishing in 19:56.7.
JMU's scoring times were rounded out by freshman Caitlin Swanson and sophomore Erin Saunders. After finishing her first collegiate race in third at the U.Va. Duals, Swanson placed eighth with a time of 20:16.3. Saunders was close behind in ninth, finishing in 20:18.2.
The five top-10 finishes secured the Dukes 25 points, the best team score. JMU was the only team with an average time under 20 minutes (19:56.72). VCU was second (50 points), followed by George Mason (68), VMI (110), Christendom College (154) and Longwood (156).
Points are awarded to a team's top five finishers, with the fastest time earning one point, the second-fastest time earning two, and so on. The sixth and seventh finishers for each team hold scoring positions, but don't tally points for their team.
Mundell and Swanson take on the course at New Market Battlefield. View the full gallery here.
TEAM RESULTS
JMU RUNNERS
UP NEXT
The Dukes head to Bethlehem, Pa. on Oct. 1 for the Paul Short Invitational. Last season JMU finished 5th out of 35 teams.
"It feels really good," Strock said about the victory. "I'm just excited about the team, we've all been training very hard this week."
Strock was neck-and-neck with George Mason's Ciara Donohue coming down the final hill, but once the finish line was in sight she pulled away to cross the finish line first with a time of 19:28.2, a full two seconds ahead of Donohue.
"I definitely got some adrenaline from that," Strock said. "I just tried to stay with her and kick as much as I could. I was very happy with the result."
Junior Nora Raher was in the lead pack for most of the race and registered a strong third-place finish with a time of 19:44.2. Senior Tessa Mundell was on her heels in fourth place, finishing in 19:56.7.
JMU's scoring times were rounded out by freshman Caitlin Swanson and sophomore Erin Saunders. After finishing her first collegiate race in third at the U.Va. Duals, Swanson placed eighth with a time of 20:16.3. Saunders was close behind in ninth, finishing in 20:18.2.
The five top-10 finishes secured the Dukes 25 points, the best team score. JMU was the only team with an average time under 20 minutes (19:56.72). VCU was second (50 points), followed by George Mason (68), VMI (110), Christendom College (154) and Longwood (156).
Points are awarded to a team's top five finishers, with the fastest time earning one point, the second-fastest time earning two, and so on. The sixth and seventh finishers for each team hold scoring positions, but don't tally points for their team.
The Dukes are battling in the lead pack. Nora Raher in front ?? pic.twitter.com/eUytsWac9g
— JMU Cross Country (@JMUCrossCountry) September 10, 2016
PHOTO OF THE RACEAt the 2-mile mark, Nora Raher and Carol Strock challenging for the lead. Tessa Mundell & Caitlin Swanson in 4th/5th pic.twitter.com/kiWnM2agJ5
— JMU Cross Country (@JMUCrossCountry) September 10, 2016
Mundell and Swanson take on the course at New Market Battlefield. View the full gallery here.
TEAM RESULTS
| Place | Team | Points |
| 1 | James Madison | 25 |
| 2 | VCU | 50 |
| 3 | George Mason | 68 |
| 4 | VMI | 110 |
| 5 | Christendom College | 154 |
| 6 | Longwood | 156 |
JMU RUNNERS
| Finish | Runner | Time |
| 1 | Carol Strock | 19:28.2 |
| 3 | Nora Raher | 19:44.2 |
| 4 | Tessa Mundell | 19:56.7 |
| 8 | Caitlin Swanson | 20:16.3 |
| 9 | Erin Saunders | 20:18.2 |
| 13 | Emily Murphy | 20:50.1 |
| 14 | Madeleine McCarty | 20:53.5 |
| 15 | Nicole Goff | 20:58.3 |
| 16 | Erica Jackson | 21:07.0 |
| 18 | Rachel Boyce | 21:14.7 |
| 23 | Angelique DeMeo | 21:25.7 |
| 24 | Micaela Poggi | 21:31.3 |
| 37 | Grace Holske | 23:40.3 |
| 45 | Emma Hubbard | 24:08.7 |
| 48 | Elise Rasmussen | 25:09.6 |
UP NEXT
The Dukes head to Bethlehem, Pa. on Oct. 1 for the Paul Short Invitational. Last season JMU finished 5th out of 35 teams.
Players Mentioned
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