Last weekend, the Amherst College women’s cross country team traveled to Waterford, Connecticut to compete in the NCAA Northeast Regional meet. They came in seventh place out of the field of 56 teams at the event, with a final point total of 226.
Savanna Gornisiewicz ’17 put in yet another strong performance and finished first for Amherst and 18th overall with a time of 22:05. While she improved upon her time from last year, she was not able to improve upon her ninth-place result from 2014.
However, by finishing inside the top 21 at the meet, Gornisiewicz earned a bid to the NCAA Division III championship meet. She looks to improve upon her 23rd-place finish overall in last year’s national championship.

The next runner for the purple and white who crossed the finish line was standout first-year Lizzie Lacy. Building on her first-place finish at the NESCAC championship meet on Oct. 31, Lacy finished just one second behind Gornisiewicz, Her time of 22:06 earned her 21st place at the meet. By finishing among the top-21 at the meet, Lacy also earned an individual bid at the NCAA Division III championship.

The third finisher for Amherst was sophomore Nicky Roberts, who crossed the finish line at the 22:55 mark. This performance earned her 56th place out of the field of 390 runners.

Following Roberts was senior co-captain Betsy Black, who finished with a time of 23:01. This time earned her 60th place at the meet.

Rounding out the scoring runners for the purple and white was Cara Lembo ’17, who finished the race in 23:08, en route to claiming 71st place overall.

While only these five runners factored into the scoring, Amherst also had two others in the race. Cat Lowdon ’17 and Veronica Rocco ’19 each turned in a strong performance, and finished with times of 23:13 and 24:04, respectively. These times were good for 74th and 125th overall.

On Nov. 15, the NCAA Division III Men’s and Women’s Track and Field and Cross Country Committee anounced the team qualifiers for the NCAA Division III championships. Despite their strong season, the women’s cross country team was not chosen. While the purple and white were not selected to participate, Lacy and Gornisiewicz will still participate as individuals.

The championship meet will be held in Winneconne, Wisconsin and will begin at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 21.