Student athletes Lindsay Forrette and Jess Partlow commended by ECAC commissioner for 'tremendous act of sportsmanship'

Two members of the ³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏ women's cross country team were recognized recently by Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Commissioner Rudy Keeling for "a tremendous act of sportsmanship" for putting the safety of a competitor above themselves.

During the second lap of the ECAC Division III Cross Country Championship Nov. 6, 2010 at Colt State Park in Bristol, Rhode Island, a runner from Salve Regina collapsed from an asthma attack.

While many competitors in the heat of the race passed by her, two runners from ³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏ, Lindsay Forrette, a sophmore marine biology major, and Jess Partlow, a junior medical biology major, stopped to help the  runner in distress, temporarily taking themselves out ot the race to assist her.

"You should be extremely proud of your student-athletes for their selfless act of sportsmanship, and for putting the well-being of a fellow competitor above themselves," wrote Commissioner Keeling in a letter to ³Ô¹Ï±¬ÁÏ Athletic Director Kimberly Allen.