No. 30 Smith Cross Country Earns At-Large Bid to NCAA Championship

November 16, 2022

The 30th-ranked Smith cross country team will make its second-straight appearance at the NCAA Championship after receiving one of 22 at-large bids.

About Smith

The Pioneers earned a second place finish at the NEWMAC Championship and fifth place finish at the NCAA Mideast Regional Championship this fall
Smith is led by Laurel Kruger (Denver, CO/Denver East) and Pria Parker, with both runners finishing in the top 15 at the conference and regional championship races
Kruger was the third runner across the finish line at NEWMACs with a personal best time of 22:08.7. She followed up that performance with an eighth-place finish at the Mideast Regional this past Saturday
Parker clocked in at 22:35.2 in the conference championship
Holding down the third spot in the Pioneer lineup was Mack Case
The final pair of scoring slots have seen Anna Louise Wildes, Shams Ferver and Anjali Jones
Smith placed 29th at last year's NCAA Championship

The Field

Johns Hopkins, the 2021 and 2019 national champions, earned an automatic qualifier by claiming its regional race.
Johns Hopkins and SUNY Cortland have each won seven NCAA Titles
MIT and Smith will represent the NEWMAC in the team race, while the following individuals also qualified: Claire Anderson and Ellie Murphy-Weise (Wellesley), Lauren Selkin (Mount Holyoke), Claire Semerod (Coast Guard)
There will be a new individual winner as the top-4 finishers from the 2021 race will not be competing
Fiona Smith of Saint Benedict will look to improve on her fifth place finish from 2021

Championship Information

Championship Hosts: Olivet College and the Greater Lansing Sports Authority
Location: Lansing, Michigan
Course: Forest Akers East Golf Course on the campus of Michigan State University

About Smith Athletics: Smith College is a NCAA Division III member of the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference that sponsors 11 intercollegiate sports. For more information log on to smithpioneers.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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