Morgan Szekely has been named Explorer of the Week following winning the Atlantic 10 Women’s Cross Country championship on Saturday morning at Schenely Park in Pittsburgh. The freshman finished thye race in 17:31.2 to help fuel the team to second overall place on the day.
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Through the first 2k of the 5k Championship, Szekely was sitting in third place, but was just .1 seconds off of the lead. In the second half of the race she was able to pull away from the competition, winning over the nearest competitor by over 10 seconds.
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The freshman from Marion, Texas earned Rookie of the Year and Performer of the Year with the win. She also became just the second freshman in the history of the Atlantic 10 to win the individual championship, and only the third La Salle runner to win the race.
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Szekely will return to action on November 14, when the Explorers head to State College, Pa. for the Mid-Atlantic Regionals. Szekely and the rest of the team will be competition for a spot in the NCAA Championships to take place at the end of the month. La Salle has sent an individual to the NCAA Championship the past two years as Megan Capozzi appeared last year and Meghan McGlinchey participated in 2012. All said, four La Salle runners have competed in the NCAA Championships.Â
