Women’s cross country team takes first at NCAA Regionals

As the rain came pouring down Saturday morning, the Middlebury women’s cross country team led the NCAA regional race, and ultimately finished in a tie for first place with rival MIT. The regional championship was held at the Twin Brook Recreation Center in Cumberland, Maine. Middlebury and MIT each finished with 63 points and earned the region’s two automatic qualifying spots for the NCAA Division III Championships. Middlebury beat long-time conference rival Williams, who finished in third place, followed by Amherst in fourth and Wesleyan in fifth place.

Addie Tousley ’13 led the Middlebury women. “Tousley ran a very smart race,” said captain Annie Sullivan ’10. “She went out hard and was able to stick with it throughout the course. It was truly a breakthrough race for her.” Tousley finished the race in fourth place overall with a time of 21:54. Second to finish for Middlebury was Claire McIlvennie ’12 with a time of 22:05.

McIlvennie was the 10th overall finisher. Just behind, in 12th place overall, was Sarah Lange ’13 with a time of 22:09. Sophia Spring ’11, finished fourth for the Panthers and 15th overall in a time of 22:17. Elise Moody-Roberts ’12 was the last scoring finisher for Middlebury with a time of 22:24. Erin Toner finished in sixth with a time of 22:41. All of Middlebury’s top six women earned all-New England honors.

The Middlebury men’s team finished the NCAA regional race in seventh place. Williams won the men’s race, followed by Amherst and Keene State. Although the men were disappointed not to have qualified for nationals, they ran a tough race, in a tight pack and left everything out on the course. Michael Schmidt ’12 led the Panthers with a ninth place overall finish in 25:36. Jack Terrett ’11, was second to finish for Middlebury, and 26th to finish overall, with a time of 26:09.

Just behind Terret was Mike Waters ’10, with a time of 26:12. Fourth to finish for Middlebury was Peter Hoffman ’10 with a time of 26:28. Middlebury’s final scorer was first-year Jack Davies ’13, finishing in 26:38. Schmidt, Terrett, and Waters earned all-New England honors.

This regional meet marks the end of the men’s season, and the beginning of the women’s quest to obtain another national championship. Next weekend the women head to Cleveland, Ohio for the NCAA Division III National Championships with seven runners and one alternate.

Additionally, Schmidt qualified to compete as an individual at nationals. The women will be watching out for MIT, Johns Hopkins and Calvin College, programs they anticipate will be their biggest competition.

“We’re ready for a challenge at nationals,” said Sullivan. “We’re peaking at the right time, and the team is pumped.” Regardless of the outcome at nationals, next weekend will mark the end of an incredibly successful and positive cross country season for both the men’s and women’s teams. A national championship for the women would be the icing on the cake.