Women’s Cross Country Places Four in Top 10 at GNAC Championships

Women’s Cross Country Places Four in Top 10 at GNAC Championships
October 29, 2022

STANDISH, Maine - Thanks to four all-conference performances with top 10 finishes, the Regis College women's cross country team produced its best result at the 2022 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Cross Country Championships since joining the league, finishing in second place at the meet hosted this year by Saint Joseph's College.

Ashleigh Kelley (Stoneham, Mass.) crossed the finish line in third place for the second straight year, completing the six-kilometer course with a time of 24:40.1. Erin Kelley (Stoneham, Mass.) earned her career-best placement at the GNAC Championships with a fourth place finish in 25:18.6, joining her sister as a First Team All-GNAC honoree.

Madelyn Klein (Framingham, Mass.) also earned First Team All-GNAC honors as well as GNAC Rookie of the Year recognition for being the first participant in their first year of collegiate competition to cross the finish line. Klein finished seventh with a time of 25:56.1, improving upon her season-best six-kilometer time by over 24 seconds.

Libby Parker (Bow, N.H.) picked up Second Team All-GNAC honors with a 10th place finish in a time of 27:42.7, over 30 seconds faster than her previous career-best six-kilometer time established two weeks ago. Elizabeth Stevenson (Scituate, Mass.) cut seven seconds off her top six-kilometer time entering the meet with a time of 28:47.7, good enough for 16th place overall.

Annabelle Jean-Philippe (Randolph, Mass.) crossed the finish line in 18th place with a time of 29:16.7, just over one second off her career-best time at six kilometers. Jonnie Charest (Methuen, Mass.) ended up in 28th place with a time of 30:59.2, just ahead of Katie Kelley (Stoneham, Mass.) in 29th place at 31:10.3, over a full minute faster than the time she produced at last year's GNAC Championships. Jessica Williams (Fiskdale, Mass.) improved upon her previous top six-kilometer time by over two-and-a-half minutes at 48:36.6.

As a team, the Pride finished solidly in second place with 40 points, far ahead of third place Emmanuel College with 79 points. Colby-Sawyer College, led by medalist Shannon O'Connell with a time of 24:11.8, placed four runners in the top eight to win the team title with 28 points.

Regis College will return to the state of Maine in two weeks, traveling to Bowdoin College for the NCAA East Regional Saturday, Nov. 12, with the women's six-kilometer race scheduled to start at 11 a.m.