Mount Saint Mary College Athletics

Rachel (Sleeter) Darling is the first Women's Cross Country runner inducted into the Mount Saint Mary College Athletic Hall Of Fame after earning All-Skyline Conference accolades in three of her four seasons as a Knight.
 
Darling closed her career with three straight top-10 finishes as the Skyline Conference Championship Meet, placing eighth as a sophomore, seventh as a junior and a career best fourth in her senior season. Darling was named Second Team All-Skyline Conference following her eighth-place finish and took home First Team All-League accolades her final two campaigns.
 
"It was great being a part of a community. I enjoyed attending the cross-country races and we would often celebrate after with meals as a team. Coach Callo always made us feel like we were part of a family away from home," Darling recalls.
 
"Being a student-athlete also helped me to stay on a schedule/routine. It instilled great habits through running and working hard. After college, I went on to win half-marathon races and place in marathons. I learned to enjoy the process and preparation for races. These skills helped me transition to the work force as a teacher and have helped me keep my health in mind with a busy schedule," she said about what being a student-athlete meant to her.
 
Darling has several proud memories of her time as a Knight, but specifically notes being able to progress each season culminating with her fourth-place finish at the league championship meet as a senior.
 
Upon graduation from the Mount, Darling went on to work at the Sacred Heart School, Dutchess Boces and Chancellor Livingston Elementary School. Darling currently teaches fifth grade special education in Rhinebeck.
 
Still an avid runner, Darling won the Walkway over the Hudson Women's Half Marathon and the Fall Foliage Women's Half Marathon in Rhinebeck in 2017. Darling also returned to the Mount front 2018-22 to serve as an assistant Cross Country Coach.
 
Darling is married to former MSMC Men's Soccer player Matt Darling and the couple welcomed their son Jake in 2019, a daughter Savannah in October.
 
Darling graduated from the Mount in 2014 with a degree in Childhood Education/Special Education and earned her Master's Degree in Literacy in 2015.