BETHLEHEM, Pa. – For the third consecutive race,
Alex Wercinski was the women's cross country team's top finisher, coming 70th among the 371 runners in the Women's College Gold 6K at the 50th Paul Short Run hosted on Lehigh University's Goodman Campus Cross Country Course, helping the Midshipmen to a 21st overall finish among the 42 teams competing at the historic meet.
"It was a very competitive race today," head coach
Kim Lewnes said. "We got lost in the dense crowds of competition. We have room for improvement and we will continue to learn in preparation for the race against Army on October 19."
Harvard, who is receiving votes in the latest USTFCCCA national poll, posted a team score of 134 to win the meet. UConn was second with 148 points, while Princeton (155), Utah State (160), and Northeastern (231) rounding out the top five in the field of 42 teams.
Werciniski finished 70th overall among the 371 runners who finished the race. The senior was 156th through the first mile, but moved up 43 spots at the two-mile checkpoint to move into 113th. The senior jumped another 43 spots in the final leg of the competition, moving into 70th overall with a time of 21:10.1. The time was the fastest 6K time of the season for the Virginia, Minn. native.
Senior team captain
Olivia Lutkevich was second among the Midshipmen, crossing the finish line with a time of 21:23.4.
Sophie Compton posted a time of 21:49.0 to close out the race in third among Navy competitors.
Lillee Tang (21:54.9) and
May McConkey (21:56.8) rounded out the Mids' top five with
Mia-Claire Kezal (22:01.1) and
Madeline Palmisciano (22:06.9) closing out Navy's counters.
Kate Leddy (22:08.9),
Lexi Ensor (22:37.3), and
Jane Phillips (23:00.5) also competed in the Women's College Gold 8K.
The Midshipmen had several runners compete in the Open 6K.
Daisy Dastrup was the top finisher for the Mids in the open, crossing the finish line with a time of 22:19.4.
Katelyn Pepin followed with a time of 22:20.6.
Paige Sheiffele (23:00.8),
Susanna Henderson (23:02.9), and
Julia Blake (23:18.8) rounded out Navy's top five in the open.
Reilly Nussbaum (23:26.1),
Charlene Huang (23:27.3),
Hailey Hodson (23:38.5),
Amelie Loomis (23:53.4),
Milana Breuninger (24:07.6),
Ava Ostrowski (24:11.5),
Emma Bradley (24:26.4), and
Elly Fox (25:30.9) also competed in the race.
Up next, Navy will host Army in the annual Star Meet, which is part of the overall Army-Navy Star Series presented by USAA, on Saturday, October 19 at the USNA Cross Country Course. The women's race is slated for 11:00 a.m. with the men's race to follow at 12:00 p.m. Live results will be available.
