Ephs impress against D1 competition at Franklin Park
Boston's Franklin Park brought fast times and an exciting
finishes for the Ephs on Saturday at the Division I New England
Cross Country Championship. The Varsity team finished 3rd place out
of 45 teams, beating all of their Division III rivals (and most of
the Division I schools as well). The Ephs were only outrun by
Boston College (1st) and Brown University (2nd). It was a beautiful
day for running on a fast and spectator-friendly course.
Lauren Philbrook maintained her perfect record, finishing 1st for
Williams for the third race in a row and 17th overall. Most
impressive for the Ephs was the small spread between the scoring
runners: only 30 seconds separated Philbrook(18:23) and Jess Clarke
(18:53), who was the 5th woman for Williams. Assistant Coach Erica
Clausen comments: "Overall there was great pack-running and team
work. It was a fast course, so we had some great times and strong
finishes. There were some exciting breakthroughs today, especially
for Senior Robin Kuntz." Kuntz finished 2nd for the team, with a
great time of 18:35 over the 5k course. Junior Bret Scofield and
Senior Gillian Tedeschi crossed the line neck and neck in
18:44.
Williams also took home 3rd place in the Sub-Varsity women's race.
Sarah Weber and Julie MacNamara lead the way in 6th and 7th places
in that race and both broke the 19-minute barrier.
Next weekend holds in store the Planksy Invitational on Williams'
home turf at Mt. Greylock High School. Clausen has high hopes for
the rest of the season, saying, "We're right on track to peak at
the right time."
