SALISBURY, Md. – The Navy women's cross country team opened up the 2024 campaign with a fourth-place finish on Saturday morning at the Salisbury Fall Classic at Winter Place Park in Salisbury, Md. Freshman Daisy Dastrup led the charge for the Midshipmen in the 6K race, finishing her first collegiate competition in eighth-place overall.
 
Led by five freshmen and a pair of sophomores, Navy finished fourth overall, tallying 87 points on the day. Maryland posted a team-low tally of 24 points to win the event. Johns Hopkins was second with 53 points, while Seton Hall was third with 85 points. Meet-host Salisbury (129 points) rounded out the top five with Messiah (184), DeSales (189), and Howard Community College (no team score) closing out the finishers.
 
"Today, we gave our younger runners the opportunity to lead the team," head coach Kim Lewnes said after the meet. "The plebes were particularly excited to compete in their Navy uniforms for the first time. The team stayed composed through the first half of the race and moved up well when instructed. Our top six all ran under 23 mins in their first 6K ever. They represented Navy well against some tough teams and all have a very bright future."
 
Dastrup posted a time of 21:38.2 in her first collegiate meet to finish eighth overall. The rookie was two seconds back of seventh place and just a minute and 16 seconds back of the individual medalist Rose Coats of Maryland, who clocked a winning time of 20:22.3.
 
Fellow freshman Madeline Palmisciano finished second among the Midshipmen and 14th overall with a time of 21:55.4. Freshmen Paige Sheiffele and Jane Phillips clocked times of 22:03.6 and 22:09.6 to finish 19th and 20th, respectively. Sophomore Reilly Nussbaum closed out Navy's scoring with a time of 22:20.5 to finish 26th overall. Freshman Julia Blake (22:43.8) and sophomore Susannah Heinz (23:04.1) rounded out Navy's top seven in the meet.
 
Sophomore Susanna Henderson (23:08.5), sophomore Sarah Colebrooke (23:16.2), freshman Hailey Hodson (23:24.4), junior Charlene Huang (23:25.6), sophomore Natalie Jack (23:34.3), freshman Emma Bradley (23:53.5), freshman Stella Perazzini (24:06.5), and freshman Elly Fox (24:19.0) also competed for the Mids.
 
The Midshipmen will host the Cantello Invitational at the USNA Cross Country Course on Saturday, Sept. 7. The meet opens with an open 5K at 9:00 a.m. before the women's 6K at 9:45 a.m. and the men's 4.9-mile run at 10:30 a.m. There will be a Bertha mile run at 11:00 a.m.