Cross country goes big, then goes home

Approximately 15 teammates embarked on a 12-hour drive from Middlebury to Cleveland, Ohio two weeks ago to cheer on the women’s cross country team and Michael Schmidt ’12 as they competed at NCAA Nationals. The women ended up finishing in fourth place overall, trailing behind Wisconsin Eau-Claire, Saint Lawrence and Calvin. Meanwhile, Schmidt individually placed 116th in a race of the nation’s top 276 Division III male runners. This meet marked the culmination of the Panthers’ cross country season.

The course for this competition was particularly difficult; set on a golf course that was muddy and had bad footing and constant rolling hills, the runners had their work cut out for them.

“It was one of the hardest courses I’ve ever seen,” said captain Annie Sullivan ’10. “The hills made it so that there was no point on the course at which you could take a break.”

Despite the difficult conditions, the women’s team had an outstanding performance. The squad was led by first-year Addie Tousley ’13, who placed 21st overall and earned all-American honors with a time of 22:43. Additionally, Tousley ’13 was the second-highest finishing rookie in the race. This was an incredible performance for Tousley, who had been consistently improving and contributing to the team throughout the season. In second place for Middlebury was first-year Sarah Lange ’13 with a time of 22:54. Again, Lange’s finish was incredible for her rookie season, but not unexpected given the strength of her performances leading up to nationals. She was only seconds away from also receiving all-American honors. Sophia Spring ’11 finished in third place for the Panthers, and 44th place overall, with a time of 23:13. Elise Moody-Roberts ’12 was Middlebury’s fourth finisher and 60th overall with a time of 23:33. The final scorer for Middlebury was Amanda Quinlan ’10 with a time of 23:52.

Additional runners for the women’s squad who did not score were Claire McIlvennie ’12 and Erin Toner ’11. McIlvennie, typically a top finisher for Middlebury, had a particularly tough race. Within the first mile, another runner stepped on the heel of the sophomore’s shoe, causing it to fall off and add important seconds to her time. Despite this setback, McIlvennie fought back and emerged from being at the very end of the pack to finishing in 106th place. This finish was demonstrative of McIlvennie’s hardworking and determined character, which has contributed so much to the Middlebury cross country program.

“Our fourth-place finish was awesome,” said Sullivan. “We really beat all the teams that we had set out to beat, and the competitors we lost to were very strong.” Middlebury outran MIT and Johns Hopkins, both of which had beaten the Panthers earlier in the season. Additionally, the women finished ahead of conference rival Williams.

Despite being pleased with the finish of their season at nationals, the women are beginning to look ahead to next fall. They will lose only one senior from the top seven runners, and will look to their rookies to turn in stellar sophomore performances. Next year, the Middlebury cross country program will remain a talented force in the field.