The men's cross country team ended its up-and-down season with a successful showing on Saturday, finishing 11th at the NCAA Division III National Championships at Whitworth College in Spokane, Washington. Senior Leslie Crofton of the women's team wrapped up both her season and her career with a dominating performance in the women's national championships, where she finished fifth overall (18:12.5) to earn All-American honors.
With her combination of speed and power, Crofton fought her way through the snow that covered the course into the top five of the race, beating Springfield's Barbara Swallow (34th overall, 18:42), who had consistently handled Crofton all season. Just like many of the male runners, Crofton covered her skin in Vaseline before the meet to serve as an insulator during the frigid race.
"It was good [to beat Swallow]," Crofton said. It wasn't as if we were dueling it out. It would have been more [rewarding] if she had run a strong race for her. She didn't run nearly as strong as she did in the season."
While her teammates were not there to see her, because the women's team did not qualify for Nationals, Crofton could not have written a better final chapter to her illustrious cross country career. The senior, who finished 57th in the nation last year, was in second place before getting out kicked at the line.
"It was really the whole goal to make it to Nationals and then to be an All-American," Crofton said. "I was happy with how I ran. My goal was to be in the top 15. Right after the race, I was sad thinking how it was my last collegiate cross country race."
Like Crofton, the Jumbos' male senior star Dave Patterson willed his way to a 16th-place finish (25:28.6), and All-American status for the first time. Patterson's display highlighted the Tufts squad, which barely missed coming in the top ten overall, falling nine points short of Wisconsin-Plateville, 332-323.
"[Patterson] ran a brilliant race," junior Jason Mann said. "He leads by example, which means running well under pressure."
"The past two weeks, [Patterson] has probably had the two best races of his life," junior Justin Lewis said. "He's really [been] taking control."
Juniors JR Cruz (56th overall, 26:14.5), Ben Smith (74th, 26:24.5), Mann (79th, 26:26.4), and Lewis (107th, 26:43.4) rounded out the Jumbos top five.
Despite finishing second on the team, Cruz, who usually runs neck-and-neck with Patterson, had a frustrating performance, crossing the finish line 46 seconds after Patterson. Nationals marked the second straight meet that Cruz has struggled. After winning the ECACs on Nov. 4, Cruz stumbled in the New England Regional Championships the following weekend.
"[Cruz] ran a good race," Mann said. "I don't think he ran as well as he wanted. He kind of had an off day like I did, and like Smith did. The three of us, for some reason, didn't run as well as we would have hoped."
While the gap between the first and second runners was much larger than usual, the Jumbos finally managed to decrease the delta separating the fourth and fifth runners, in large part because of Lewis.
"I pretty much had one of my best races ever," Lewis said. "The other guys may not have had their best races. I just felt good and had a great race."
For much of the season, the gap between the fourth and fifth runners had been the squad's most prominent weakness. On Saturday, only 17 seconds separated fourth and fifth men, Mann and Lewis, respectively.
"[Lewis] ran out of his mind," Mann said.
In a repeat of last week's Regional Championships, the five New England teams finished in the same order that they did in Dartmouth, Mass. Keene State dominated the five teams, placing three runners in the top 15 to finish second overall. Williams (fifth overall), Tufts, Trinity (14th overall) and the Coast Guard (17th overall) completed New England's impressive showing.
"We know [Williams and Keene State] are both strong teams," Lewis said. "We aren't upset finishing behind them."
In spite of Coast Guard's 17th place finish, by having four teams in the top 16, the NCAA guarantees New England five automatic births for next year's National Championship meet, the maximum for any region.
"It is good for New England because it shows that we are one of the best regions in the country," Lewis said."
