Marlee Starliper started off her senior season with a bang.
Starliper clocked a 16:30 at the Lebanon Valley College (LVC) Dutchmen Invitational, setting a new Pennsylvania state record for an XC 5K. The previous top mark stood at 16:43 by Mechanicsburg Area's Lois Brommer since 1981.
Starliper, who just started her senior year at Northern, wanted an opportunity to run a fast time and saw the relatively flat Union Canal Tunnel Park in Annville as a good chance to pop a quick one. She didn't disappoint, running a mostly solo effort for the win, breaking Brommer's previous record by 13 seconds.
"It was one of those races where I was totally running off of joy," Starliper said after the race. "I had a blast and I felt surprisingly really, really good."
| PLACE | ATHLETE | TEAM | RESULT | POINTS | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marlee Starliper | 12 | Northern | 16:30.00 | 1 | ||
| 2 | Gwyneth Young | 11 | Cedar Crest | 18:30.00 | 2 | ||
| 3 | Margaret Carroll | 11 | Northeastern | 18:43.00 | 3 | ||
| 4 | Katie Anthony | 12 | Northern | 19:12.90 | 4 | ||
| 5 | Hannah Rohrer | 10 | Palmyra | 19:20.90 | 5 | ||
She went through the mile at 5:10 and kept it going through to the finish.
Saturday was Starliper's first XC race of the season and first competition since the Pan-American U20 Track & Field Championships, where she placed second in the 3,000 meters. At that race, she set a PA state record with a time of 9:27.88. After that race, Starliper took some down time before going to the Nike Elite Camp in Oregon.
It was also a big day for the Northern team, which scored 39 points to take the team win with 39 points. A strong Northeastern squad was second with 51 points. Cedar Crest's Gwyneth Young took second individually in 18:30, followed by Northeastern's Margaret Carroll (third in 18:43).
Watch race highlights above and check out an interview with Starliper and other meet links below:
