After a pair of first-place finishes and a third-place spot, the Jumbos have established themselves as the runners to catch for the rest of the Div. III pack.
And on Saturday, the Jumbos made their presence felt to an even larger swath of the running world.
A sixth-place finish at the New England Open Championships may be one of the most convincing showings for the Jumbos yet this season. Facing off against 45 other teams representing Div. I, II, and III schools from all over the country, the team got its best finish ever at the race and witnessed a marked improvement from a 13th-place placing last year.
"I was not surprised by the team's sixth-place finish," senior tri-captain Sarah Crispin said. "We have a lot of very tough, hard-working, and talented individuals on this team and I knew we were capable of finishing where we did."
Coach Kristen Morwick was exceptionally pleased with her team's results.
"It was outstanding," Mowick said. "This was the best finish Tufts women have ever had at this race. There were a ton of personal best times. The course was running fast, but as a team, it was one of our best [showings] ever."
Included in those exceptional times were juniors Catherine Beck and Katy O'Brien, who anchored the Jumbos' strong performance. The two finished the 5K course in ninth and 19th places, respectively, with Beck finishing in 17:51 and O'Brien following closely behind at 18:14.
"Saturday's race was unique in that it is a close approximation to the feeling of running at [Nationals]," Beck said. "The race is huge and very competitive, so we all got a feel for racing in a tightly packed crowd."
All runners were pleased with the improved performance this season, and this should give the team a strong indication of how they will perform at Nationals.
"There was also a lot of good competition, especially from the Div. I schools like Boston University," sophomore Evelyn Sharkey said. "It reminded me a lot of Nationals last year, and it's definitely good practice to run in meets like this so we can get used to [the competition].
Div. I foe Boston University captured the race with 126 points, while NESCAC rivals Middlebury and Amherst settled for the silver and bronze, respectively. Tufts finished with 208 points, placing third among NESCAC schools, which showed the Jumbos' level of competition.
"[Our finish] definitely puts it in perspective with schools that have scholarship programs," Morwick said. "The fact that we were competitive, and the third Div. III team overall, it was a great race overall for the team."
The team echoed their coach's sentiments.
"This is a good mid-season affirmation that our hard work is paying off, and I am very excited to see where we can go from here," Beck said.
Morwick was surprised by the high finish from Middlebury, not traditionally a NESCAC cross country power, and added that it shows areas that her squad can work on.
The results were indicative of the squad's improvement within the NESCAC as well, with new polls placing the Jumbos sixth overall in Div. III. Tufts is one of three NESCAC schools in the top six, along with Amherst at No. 2 and Middlebury at No. 5.
The team's next challenge will be the Plansky Invitational at Williams. The Jumbos edged out the Ephs on Saturday, and the team looks to build on its status as one of the premier teams of the region.
"We'll worry about competing this weekend when we get there," Crispin said. "[But] I'm confident that we'll do our best and I am excited for our team to have a chance to run head to head with Williams."
