Photo courtesy of Mount Holyoke Athletics. Lauren Selkin '23 qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships on Saturday, Nov. 12.
By Genevieve Zahner ’26
Staff Writer
The Mount Holyoke Cross Country team earned an 11th place finish out of 21 teams at the National Collegiate Athletic Association Mideast Regional Championships. The race was held at St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York, on Saturday, Nov. 12. With an overall team score of 327, the Lyons finished behind Connecticut College and ahead of Westfield State University, while Williams College took first place with a total score of 47.
“I felt really confident [because] … our training and racing have been so consistent,” Head Cross Country and Track and Field Coach Jay Hartshorn said. “Our goal was to get 11th place, and I knew if we ran the way we have run all year we would be happy with our performance.”
Lauren Selkin ’23 finished in ninth place out of 159 runners with a time of 22 minutes and 51.9 seconds. Her top-35 performance qualified her for the NCAA Division III Championships, making it her second national appearance in two years. In addition, her performance secured her All-Region honors for a second consecutive season, given her fourth place finish in last year’s regional championship.
“It was the rain and very [sloppy] conditions that really made it challenging, but I am fairly satisfied with my finish,” Selkin said. “I did what I came to do: secure a spot for the NCAA championship in Michigan.” Selkin, who also qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships in the 2021-2022 season, was the first runner in the Mount Holyoke cross country program’s history to compete at the national level, where she finished 48th out of 292 competitors. The top-40 finishers are granted All-American honors.
Tessa Lancaster ’25 came in 69th place with a time of 25:10.0, and Bridget Hall ’24 came in 76th place with a time of 25:28.3, both coming in just a few minutes after Selkin. Other finishes by the team include Greta Trapp ’25, who came in 85th overall at 25:51.5, Olivia Johnson ’25, who came in 93rd overall at 26:11.5, Kim Beaver ’25 coming in just behind Johnson in 94th place at 26:13.3 and Devan Ravino ’23, who came in 108th place overall at 27:03.9.
The regional championship concluded the regular 2022-2023 season for the Mount Holyoke cross country team. Selkin will compete in the NCAA Division III Championships in East Lansing, Michigan, on Saturday, Nov. 19, to have a chance at being named an All-American.