April 22, 2005
ORLANDO - Olinka Crusoe from New York City's Bishop Loughlin High School signed a National Letter of Intent (NLI) to join the UCF women's track and field team in 2005-06, head coach Marcia Mansur-Wentworth announced on Friday.
"Olinka is a very talented student-athlete and I look forward to having her join us next year," said Mansur-Wentworth.
Crusoe is a two-time New York Scholastic Athletic Association (NYSAA) sectional champion in the indoor 55m and outdoor 100m events. She also won the Brooklyn/Queens sectional title in the 100m and 200m during both the 2004 and 2005 seasons and took top honors in both events at the 2004 Catholic High School Athletic Association (CHSAA) City Championship.
In outdoor track, Crusoe has recorded personal bests of 12.28 in the 100m and 25.21 in the 200m, while posting times of 56.61 in the 400m and 2:20 in the 800m. She boasts a personal best of 7.20 in the 55m and 25.52 in the 200m indoor events.
"Olinka is a great young talent with good range from the 60m up to the 800m events," said UCF assistant coach John Guarino, who works with the sprinters and also serves as recruiting coordinator.
Crusoe joins a UCF women's track team that has collected six consecutive Atlantic Sun Championships. The Golden Knights move to Conference USA in 2005-06.