Duarte’s Career-Best 6K Run Leads USC At Highlander Invitational

Women’s Cross Country | October 19, 2024

Jacqueline Duarte ran a personal-best 6K time to lead the Trojans to a 13th-place finish at the Highlander Invitational (6K) today.  For the third time in three races this season, the Trojans had a different runner lead the way and all of USC’s runners finished in the top 139 of the 261 competitors.

“It was a good competition today, I think the ladies competed really well,” said USC Associate Head Coach of Cross Country, Assistant T&F Coach Milton Mallard.  “I thought the unit as a whole came together.  Each week we are getting a little better, led by Jacqui this weekend.  I think she’s continuously getting better each week.  We were still down a couple of our student-athletes, but I think we are rounding out to a great form, getting ready for the conference championships.  Stay tuned!”

The redshirt junior Duarte, who has battled injuries throughout her career, led the Trojans with a career-best 6K time of 22:35.5 to finish 68^th overall (54^th in scoring).  Duarte improved 12 spots during the final 2K of the race, the sixth-best of the top 70 finishers in the race.  Duarte was actually 111^th after 2K and 80^th at the 4K marker.

Senior Giovanna Pisano was the Trojans’ second finisher, running a season- best 6K time of 22:41.6 to finish 76^th overall (59^th in scoring).  Right behind her was graduate student Olivia Schmitt who had a time of 22:50.7 to place 85^th (65^th in scoring).  It was her first career 6K race.

Junior Lucia Rabolli had a time of 23:06.2 in her first 6K of the season to place 99^th (77^th in scoring).  Graduate student Leah Disher, in her first race of the season and first career 6K, had a time of 23:19.6 to finish 126^th (93^rd in scoring).  USC’s final runner was sophomore Haley Spoden who had a season-best 6K time of 23:30.9 to place 139^th (100^th in scoring).

USC’s next meet will be on Friday, Nov. 1 when it competes in its first Big Ten Cross Country Championships, to be hosted by Illinois on the Orange and Blue Golf Course in Savoy, Ill.