W. Cross Country wins NCAA Mid-East Regional

The women of Hopkins cross country not only led their team this weekend but also the whole Mid-East region, placing first in the NCAA Mid-East Regional meet.

Led by senior Mira Patel, the women's performance at regionals looks promising for this weekend's NCAA championships.

"The women did an outstanding job," senior Mike Yuan said. "And Mira, as usual, was awesome."

"It was a fun race," as Patel simply put it. Hours before the race, it was decided that senior Laura Paulsen, who has led the Lady Jays for most of the season, would not be running. Paulsen was still recovering from an illness that kept her off the roads the week before.

The team then looked to junior Megan Brower to step up and fill the final seventh spot. And Brower, who had run with the top pack for most of the season, did not let her teammates down.

The girls had a great start of the race, leading the pack as they ascended the first hill into the cornfields of Lehigh's course. At the mile, sophomore Cecilia Furlong led the race, with Patel and a strong back of the regions top runners at her heels.

Coming up to the final mile, Patel was leading the Jays and was still in contact with the front pack. Furlong stayed strong and was followed closely by freshman Liz Provost and juniors Nadia McMillan and Mary O'Grady.

At the finish, Patel took tenth place with a time of 22:09.02, followed by Furlong in 12th (22:23.8). Provost took 23rd (22:46.4), McMillan 30th (23:07.3) and O'Grady 34th (23:08.8). The girls scored 109 points, four points ahead of second place finisher Dickinson College.

"It was good to see us take first, even without Laura running," Patel said.

This is the second time in Hopkins history that the women have won regionals - the first being last season.

Over the past eight years the women have become increasingly stronger. In 2001, the team took a mediocre 12th place at the regional meet. By 2006 they had moved up to fifth, though only Laura Paulsen (a freshman at the time) qualified individually for nationals.

Part of the ladies' power comes from a strong senior class. Paulsen and Patel are among the first to cross the finish line at almost every meet. Seniors Mary O'Grady and Nadia McMillan aren't ever too far behind, and all four were named on the All-Regional Team. Also on this team were freshman Liz Provost and sophomore Cecilia Furlong, showing some depth the team will need next year.

Though the men's team didn't secure a spot at nationals, junior Steve Tobochnik managed to land an individual spot. Tobochnik was Hopkins' fastest man of the weekend, taking 20th place among 314 runners.

"I'm excited," said Tobochnik, "and definitely looking forward to a competitive race this weekend."

Senior David Sigmon wasn't far behind Tobochnik, placing 30th. Both men scored a spot on the All-Regional Team.

Though the men haven't made quite as big a leap as the women, improvement is still written all over the record books. In 2001 they took a lowly 17th at regionals, moving up to 13th in 2005, 8th in 2006, fifth in 2008 and taking a slight dip to seventh this year.

"Taking a step back and reflecting on the entire season, however, I think we can all take pride in what we were able to accomplish," Yuan said about the men's season.

"We will definitely expect to qualify as a team next year," Tobochnik said.

The plane ride to Ohio for the meet this weekend should be interesting for Tobochnik, as he'll be the only man travelling among a group of Hopkins women. Luckily, all the runners (men and women) who aren't racing in nationals will be driving up to Ohio and will at the finish line for support.

"I look forward to cheering the girls on at nationals next weekend," said Yuan.

The NCAA Division III National Championships will take place this Saturday Berea, Ohio. Race time is set for 11 a.m.