WESTFIELD, Mass. — The Southern Vermont College women's cross country team ran a stellar race Saturday at the 2015 New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Championship, placing fourth in the 5,000 meter race held at Stanley Park.
The Mountaineers finished fourth as a team, just two points off of the second-place crew, with nine members setting new personal bests. Three SVC runners made their way to all-NECC teams with one moving up on the all-time Southern Vermont record list.
The park provided excellent running conditions for the competitors as abundant sunshine made for a pleasant day with temperatures around 50 degrees.
SVC junior Shelby Whitman (Bennington, Vt.) led the team, finishing second overall at 20:17; that time was nine seconds faster than her previous-best collegiate mark and was only 10 seconds off of the best time ever run by a Mountaineer on a 5k course, a record still held by head coach Kathleen Newton (2002). Whitman was immediately followed by Bennington College sophomore Annika Kristiansen (Keene, N.H.) who came through third overall, crossing at 20:23 for a time 20 seconds faster than her previous best and good enough to move her up to third on the all-time SVC 5k record list. Both Whitman and Kristiansen's placements were good enough for them to land on the All-NECC First Team, Whitman's being her second straight.
Southern Vermont junior Schyler McGuire (Mechanicville, N.Y.) made her way to her third all-conference team in as many years, making the All-NECC Second Team with a ninth-place finish at 21:23. Bennington sophomore Isabella Poulos (Milwaukee, Wis.) was fourth for the Mountaineers, taking 55 seconds off her previous personal record for a 23:02 showing. She was closely followed by SVC senior Emily Freling (Schenevus, N.Y.) who crossed at 23:29, knocking 14 seconds off her old PR to round out the Southern Vermont top five.
Junior Emily Lesure (Cheshire, Mass.) put up a time 19 seconds faster than her previous best, coming in sixth for SVC at 23:33. A freshman tandem followed her in consecutive order, Morgan Arleth (Berlin, Vt.) crossing at 24:54 while Morgan Kaeppel (Vernon, Vt.) was right behind with a time of 26:03; those markings were 59 seconds and 1:05 faster than their previous bests, respectively.
Mountaineer senior Ashley Perrino (Schenectady, N.Y.) was next for the team at 29:18, a time 15 seconds ahead of her old PR, as junior Kaylee Cross (Lewis, N.Y.) took 20 seconds off her previous top showing for a 29:31.
Wheelock College amassed 51 team points, topping the other seven crews by eight to bring home the Championship trophies. Lesley University, a team that had won all seven of the previous NECC meets, edged a pair of crews to take second with 59 points. Regis College rounded out the top three team scores, edging SVC by just one with a total of 60.
Each participating squad named one of its runners to the inaugural NECC All-Sportsmanship Team, Whitman getting the nod for Southern Vermont.
Next up for the Mountaineers is the Eastern College Athletic Conference Division III Championship, a 6,000 meter race being hosted by Williams College at Mount Greylock Regional High School. That meet is slated to begin at 12 p.m. next Saturday, November 7.
Southern Vermont
2nd – Shelby Whitman: 20:17 (PR)
3rd – Annika Kristiansen: 20:23 (PR)
9th – Schyler McGuire: 21:23
23rd – Isabella Poulos: 23:02 (PR)
24th – Emily Freling: 23:29 (PR)
25th – Emily Lesure: 23:33 (PR)
36th – Morgan Arleth: 24:54 (PR)
45th – Morgan Kaeppel: 26:03 (PR)
56th – Ashley Perrino: 29:18 (PR)
57th – Kaylee Cross: 29:31 (PR)