Cross country teams storm NESCACs to take title

For the first time ever in the history of Middlebury cross-country, the Middlebury men took home a NESCAC championship at Hamilton College on Saturday. The last time the men touched the top three was in 1991. This year, they won. The women’s team helped make history as well by winning their third straight NESCAC championship and making this year Coach Aldrich’s first ever NESCAC double win. He was, needless to say, thrilled.
“I would honestly say it was the best combined performance in a championship meet in the history of cross country at Middlebury,” said Aldrich. “The NESCAC is arguably the strongest conference in the country and for us to pull out the win with both teams was an epic performance but not entirely surprising.’”
The Panthers have worked hard on both sides this year, training hard and racing hard. Aldrich credits the team’s pre-season training regimen for their sucsess this season.
“The Chipman Hill training in September made us better prepared than any other team for the sloppy, wet and muddy conditions.  Both Coach [Nicole] Wilkerson and I knew that our men had not run up to their potential and were waiting for the team to run the way they could,” said Aldrich.
Jack Terrett ’11 also commented on the conditions of the course that the Panthers had to push through for their win.
“The race was extremely tough as the ground was wet from last week’s heavy rain –– ankle deep mud for large parts of the course.  It was definitely the most challenging conditions that I’ve raced in in my four years running XC at Middlebury.  Everyone showed tremendous strength and grit to fight through these conditions and to come away with the victory is unbelievable.”
Despite the mud, the men’s team had some stand out performances. The men placed 5 of their 12 runners in scoring spots.Top scorers included Nate Sans ’14, who was 45th with a time of 27:38, Terrett, who finished 15th over all with a time of 26:47, Jack Davies ‘13, who at 26:38 took ninth, Greg Krathwohl ’14, who came in third with a time of 26:36 and once again, Micheal Schmidt ’12, who led the Panthers with a time of 26:22 for a second-place finish. Schmidt ran, according to his coach, “a courageous race,” out running the top runner from Amherst to finish second to a Hamilton senior, Peter Kosgei. Schmidt credits the support from the fans and fellow team members on the sideline as an incredible source of encouragement for the men’s team. As for the feeling of winning, Terrett put it best.
“It was an incredible feeling to sweep NESCACS, and especially for the men, to win the championship for the first time in Middlebury’s history,” said Terrett. “When I found out that we had won, I couldn’t quite believe it –– everyone began cheering, hugging, crying and of course, high-fiving.”
The women’s team also saw a victorious day, with five Panthers finishing in the top eight. In eight place was Hanna Meier ’12 with a time of 22:56, Katie Rominger ’14 in seventh at 22:55, Claire McIIvennie ’12 in sixth at 22:47, Maddie Hubbell ’14 in third with a time of 22:26 and leading the Panthers was Colette Whitney ’14 with a time of 22:23 and a second place finish overall. A proud Coach Aldrich commented on Whitney’s sucsess.
“Whitney ran a tremendous race and will earn NESCAC Rookie of the Year for her second place finish.“
The winning feeling from the men’s side was contagious, and Juliet Ryan-Davis ’13 felt it.
“When the results came out that [the men’s team had] won though, that is when it got good! They set the stage for the girls to do what they had to do. I felt so energized by seeing the teams racing so well. It was really impressive, and it was definitely worth the long drive both ways. I was extremely proud to be cheering for Middlebury.”
Up next for the Panthers is ECACs and NCAA Regional Qualifiers.