With top runners resting, women finish eighth

In anticipation of the NCAA qualifying meet taking place an Westfield State this weekend, the top seven runners who will compete in the event were given the week off from competition. This gave the second seven a chance to shine at this past weekend's ECAC Championship race hosted by Williams College, where the Jumbos finished eighth amongst a varied field of 43 teams.

"Some teams run some of their top seven if that group isn't totally set or to give someone who has been injured a chance to compete again, but most rest the top seven," coach Kristen Morwick said. "It gives a chance for the second seven to run their own championship race."

The eighth-place finish put forth by the squad was a remarkable accomplishment, marking the first time Tufts placed within the top ten at ECAC's since 1997. While the Jumbos team was comprised wholly of the second seven, some of the teams that they were up against had remnants of the top seven competing. The US Coast Guard, who captured second place overall, raced its full top seven while third-place Colby College contended with members of its top seven.

"Everyone was really excited for the meet because it was the last race of the season or, for some, the last race ever," senior Sarah Foss said. "Even given this excitement, I think everyone felt that it was a very challenging course. The first words out of my mouth were that it was the hardest race I have ever run. But, at the end, we were all satisfied because we knew that we had given the course all we could."

For seniors Ashley Peterson (25:43.3), Foss (25:50.4), and Megan Dibiase (27:27.8), this race was the last of their cross country collegiate career. Peterson, who was the first Tufts runner to finish at 38th, could compete next weekend, making the trip to the NCAA qualifying meet as an alternate. Junior Katie Higley (26:21.3) was the fourth Jumbo to cross the line, behind Peterson, Foss, and freshman Arielle Aaronson (26:13.7), having a strong race to end the season. The three freshmen who competed _ Aaronson, Kristin Shinkawa(26:32.1), and Elyse Archila(26:39.6) _ all gained valuable experience at a championship venue that will carry over to next season.

"It's a good experience for people to get in the setting of a championship race," Morwick said. "Kristen (Munson) and Ashley both got experience at ECACs last year and now they are both heading to the NCAA qualifiers this year with that much more familiarity."

With the top seven runners set for this coming weekend, the Jumbos have their eyes set on one of five coveted spots that will send teams to the NCAA Championship meet in two weeks. Seniors Mary Nodine, Danielle Perrin, Heidi Tyson, Kristen Munson, juniors Lauren Caputo and Lauren Dunn, and freshman Becca Ades comprise the core of runners who will look to topple the top five. While Williams and Middlebury have essentially clinched the first and second spots, given their performances thus far in the season, there are three spots that any of as many as six teams could fill.

Bowdoin poses one of the greatest threats in winning one of the spots, having flexed its muscle in an impressive third place finish at the NESCAC Championships after remaining inconspicuous for most of the season. Wesleyan finished one place behind the Polar Bears at the same race, and will also be viable competition in rounding out the top five.

While Trinity has proven dangerous at some points, its track record of not quite being able to put it all together at important races could come back to haunt the team at the NCAA qualifiers, much as it did at NESCACs. Keene State and Brandeis could pose a challenge for Tufts, but both teams have been plagued by injury woes in their top seven in the past weeks, which could make them a nonfactor this weekend.

"Bates ran out of their minds at the NESCAC Championships, who knows if they can repeat that performance," Morwick said. "If Trinity races as they should they could be contenders and Bowdoin also has a really good shot. The 6K suits our team better and we know the course having run it earlier in the season. So we're ready for this race, it's just a matter of putting it together on the day."

The squad hopes to employ the pack racing strategy that has been used throughout the season to neutralize the top runners of other teams. If Caputo and Ades can place as well as they have done and if the pack can move up with them and get between the second and third runners for schools like Bowdoin, Wesleyan, and Trinity, then the result the team is looking for would be attainable.

"I think the key of making a top five finish realistic is that the top seven come together and run as a solid pack," Foss said. "The pack will have to be right there and really push forward to Caputo and Becca. We just have to hope that everything goes well and that our pack moving up a lot will push others back. It's been developing over the past couple of weeks and hopefully it's there this weekend."