Women's cross country struggles at NESCACs

This weekend, the women's cross country team finished seventh in the NESCAC, two spots short of their goal, fifth. Tufts' top five runners combined for 174 points, which left them behind fifth place Wesleyan (139) and sixth place Bowdoin (167). Coach Kristen Morwick expected close competition from those teams, but prior to the meet, expressed optimism that her squad could defy the seventh-place ranking they wore heading into Saturday.

At NESCACs, Middlebury ran away with the title, tallying only 55 points. The Panthers were tailed closely by Amherst (64), defending national champion Williams (77), and Trinity (79). Barring any major upsets or a meteor destroying Williamstown, those teams -- in one order or another--should sweep the top spots again at Div. III's.

Although cross country is a team scoring sports, one runner stood out.

Senior co-captain Lauren Caputo turned in a stellar performance for the women's cross country team Saturday, taking 12th in the league championship and garnering all-NESCAC honors.

"She ran a brave race," Morwick said. "The course [in Middlebury, Vt.] was muddy, wet, hilly, and really challenging. You knew that she was working for every step she took."

According to Morwick, Caputo's throat closed up toward the end of the race, leaving her gasping for air. Nevertheless, Caputo fended off two runners at her heels and passed another just before crossing the finish line in 19 minutes flat.

"She really put it all out there," Morwick said, also noting that Caputo finished very strongly "in a field of women who will be All-Americans."

Morwick was optimistic that Caputo will qualify for nationals at the Div III New England meet in two weeks, where the top five teams and nine other individuals will earn a ticket to the NCAA's. She said that sophomore Becca Ades and senior co-captain Lauren Dunn could also qualify.

Entering NESCAC's, that "solid seven" was more like a "solid six," due to the loss of sophomore Arielle Aaronson to femoral stress fractures. Junior Katie Sheedy's secured herself as Aaronson's replacement with a breakout performance Saturday, placing sixth for the Jumbos and 60th overall in 20:51.7.

"I think that Sheedy's a solid addition," Dunn said. "She had an amazing race Saturday. I think she proved herself to really want to be part of the team."

Dunn also commended freshman Sarah Crispin for her performance. Crispin is usually Tufts' fifth runner, but claimed fourth on the team and 47th overall at NESCACs. She crossed the line just before junior Emily Pfeil, who was 49th, in 20:18.8. Freshman Samantha Moland was 7th for Tufts, racing to 63rd in 21:05.3.

Crispin and Sheedy were not the only Jumbos that placed better within their team than usual. Dunn, Tufts' number three runner, was the second brown and blue uniform to cross the line, at 19:40.8 -- good for 29th overall.

Sophomore Becca Ades, Tufts' number two runner, had a disappointing race, finishing third on the team and 37th overall, in 19:49.6. Morwick said that Ades had a difficult week personally.

"You could tell from the beginning she was hurting," Morwick said.

Tufts will have one more chance to beat Bowdoin and Wesleyan at the Div. III meet in Cumberland, Maine. As was the case heading into last weekend, the top four spots in New England Div. III are almost completely reserved, leaving the Jumbos to battle it out with the Cardinals and the Polar Bears for fifth.

Next weekend, the Jumbos will host the ECAC meet at the Farm Course in Grafton. The top seven will be resting up for Div. III's, which will allow Tufts' "second seven," the eighth through fourteenth runners, to compete.

"It will give [them] a good chance to wrap up their seasons well," Dunn said.

She added that runners who "bust out and have a good performance" could earn spots as alternates for the coming weeks.

Morwick said it was inspiring to see other Tufts runners step up when some of their teammates were struggling. She called Dunn's race "a big breakthrough" and was optimistic that she could repeat such a performance at Div. IIIs--which would make a trip to nationals for the squad far more likely.

Tufts will have to wait another two weeks to find out if any Jumbos will head to NCAA's. Next weekend, the team's top seven will head to Grafton to cheer for the competing Tufts contingent, which Morwick said has a good shot at the top three, since most other teams will also be resting their fastest runners.

The following weekend, Tufts' varsity seven will take to the course again, and this time, the team's fate will be in their hands--or rather, in their feet.