Seven points. An improvement of one place for each runner. That's all that stood between the women's cross country team and a trip to the NCAA Div. III National Cross Country Meet this past season.
"That was something that was a very realistic goal for us this year," senior tri-captain Emily Pfeil said. "It was well within our reach."
The women ran into stiff competition at the New England Regional Meet held in Twin Brooks, Maine, finishing just behind NESCAC rivals Amherst and Wesleyan. Only the top five teams would move on to Nationals in Eau Claire, Wis. The Jumbos placed sixth.
Yet while the Jumbos did not move onto the Nationals, the disappointment should not overshadow a productive season for the women.
"We took a huge step in the right direction this season," Pfeil said.
Last season the Jumbos were ninth out of 35 teams at the regional meet. This season they were sixth out of 41 teams. They also finished fourth at the ECACs, an improvement of four places over last season. And they accomplished all these feats despite having five of their top eight runners new to the team.
The Jumbos compensated for the losses of seniors Lauren Caputo and Lauren Dunn with the additions of freshmen Catherine Beck, Katy O'Brien, Anna Shih, and Laura Walls, and a sophomore transfer Raquel Morgan. The incoming freshmen and Morgan had an immediate impact for the Jumbos, a pleasant surprise for the team.
"It was a very young team. It was almost a new team," Pfeil said. "I don't think we expected to have such a young team in our top eight. It was great. It was fantastic. It helped us move forward."
The newcomers joined senior Katie Sheedy, junior Becca Ades, and sophomore Sarah Crispin to form a strong varsity team. Nipping right at their heels were seniors Katie Mason and Pfeil, junior Arielle Aaronsen, and sophomores Jenny Torpey and Samantha Moland, who rounded out a very deep squad.
"We had a really strong second team," Shih said. "It was pretty impressive how they did at ECACs."
"We had a lot of returners that just worked a lot harder this summer," Pfeil said. "People realized what it was going to take to get us to our goal. They came back in great shape."
The strong second team created a welcomed problem for Morwick, who found herself constantly having to choose between a wide range of strong runners to form her top team. The Jumbos took first place at both the Connecticut College Invite and the Twin Brook Invite.
Ades was the team's top runner for just about every race and was the lone female Jumbo at Nationals. Her 13th place performance at Regionals ensured her a spot in the race at Eau Claire, where she finished 118th.
Morgan, who transferred from a strong cross country program at the University of Colorado, and O'Brien consistently dueled for second and third for the Jumbos. Morgan finished 19th at the Regional meet while O'Brien led the Jumbos at the McGill Invite with a 13th place finish on the 4,000 meter course.
Beck, Shih, Walls, Sheedy, and Crispin frequently fluctuated as the fourth through seventh runners. Beck (35th, 23:14) and Crispin (51st, 23:38) both had strong races at the Regional meet. Sheedy (37th, 19:37) ran well at the NESCAC Championships as the Jumbos sixth runner while Walls raced to a fourth place finish at the All New England Championships in the sub-varsity race. Shih ran well for the Jumbos at the McGill Invitational (28th, 15:06) and the Jumbo Invitational (17th, 24:05).
The Jumbos constantly had worried over whether their young team would be able to handle the pressure of important meets, considering their inexperience.
"We just hadn't been there before. It was just a completely new experience," Shih said.
"This is their first collegiate season," Pfeil said. "You never know how they are going to adjust to collegiate training. They adjusted very well. But we were constantly unsure. You are just never quite sure how things are going to turn out."
The Jumbos will now focus on next season where, barring any setbacks, they will return six of their top seven, with their replacement for Katie Sheedy already running close to the top seven. With such a strong team returning and other NESCAC teams graduating most of their runners, the Jumbos should be one of the strongest teams in New England.
"Being seven points away from qualifying for Nationals is leaps and bounds closer than where we were last year," Pfeil said. "Hopefully next year they'll be able to qualify."
