NORTHAMPTON, Mass. — Coming off a perfect score at the Ellen O'Neil Invitational, the Smith College cross country team travels to Keene, N.H., on Saturday, Oct. 3, for the KSC Invitational. The Bears will compete in both the 10:30 a.m. and 11:20 a.m. races against a field that includes six NEWMAC opponents and six regionally ranked programs.
MEET INFO
Event: KSC Invitational
Date: Saturday, Oct. 3
Race times: 10:30 a.m. and 11:20 a.m.
Site: Owl Athletic Complex (Keene, N.H.)
Host: Keene State College
SERIES HISTORY
Smith did not compete at the KSC Invitational from 2022 through 2025.
LAST TIME OUT
Smith swept the first six places and scored a perfect 15 points to win the Ellen O'Neil Invitational on Sept. 19 at its home course. The Bears finished 40 points ahead of runner-up Babson. Lucy Kreipke won the individual title in 23:27.4. Avery Maiese placed second in 23:46.2, and Catherine Collins was third in 24:40.9.
SCOUTING THE BEARS
Kreipke has led Smith in both races this fall. She opened the season by placing 14th in 19:24.3 at the Trinity Invitational, where Smith finished fifth. First-year Hadley Smith took 16th in her collegiate debut at Trinity and then finished fourth at Ellen O'Neil, one-tenth of a second behind Collins. Senior Sofia Jurusz has scored in both meets, and junior Amelia Gronert rounded out Smith's scoring five at Trinity. At Trinity, the Bears' 1:09 spread between their first and fifth runners was the fourth-tightest in the field.
SCOUTING THE FIELD
Tufts enters ranked No. 1 in the Northeast Region. Williams is ranked No. 1 in the Mideast, which is Smith's region. The other ranked teams in the field are Northeast No. 2 MIT, No. 4 Bowdoin, No. 8 Wellesley and No. 9 New England. In the Little East Conference preseason poll, host Keene State was picked second with 58 points and two first place votes. Plymouth State, which is also in the field, was picked first with 63 points and seven first place votes.
The rest of the field includes Assumption, Castleton, Curry, Eastern Connecticut State, Endicott, Franklin Pierce, Gordon, Hartford, Maine Maritime, Maine-Farmington, Nichols, Plattsburgh State, Southern Maine, Saint Anselm, UMass Dartmouth, Union (N.Y.), Wentworth and Western Connecticut State.
COMMON GROUND
Six NEWMAC programs join Smith in Keene: Babson, Emerson, MIT, Springfield, Wellesley and Wheaton. Smith beat Babson and Springfield at Ellen O'Neil two weeks ago, finishing 40 points ahead of Babson and 56 ahead of Springfield. All seven NEWMAC teams in the field will meet again at the NEWMAC Championship, which Smith hosts in Northampton on Oct. 31.
BEAR BITES
- The Ellen O'Neil course will host the NEWMAC Championship on Oct. 31.
- Kreipke earned All-Region honors in 2025 and competed at the NCAA Championship.
- Smith placed fourth at the 2025 NEWMAC Championship and 11th of 25 teams at the NCAA Mideast Regional.
NUMBERS TO KNOW
- 15: Smith's perfect team score at Ellen O'Neil
- 6: regionally ranked teams in the field
- 1:40: the gap between Smith's first and fifth runners at Ellen O'Neil
- 19:53: Smith's top-five average at Trinity
- 2: Kreipke's team-leading finishes this season
UP NEXT
Smith competes at the James Earley Invitational at Stanley Park in Westfield, Mass., on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 10:30 a.m.
About Smith Athletics
Smith College is a NCAA Division III member of the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) that sponsors 11 intercollegiate sports. For more information, log on to GoSmithBears.com and follow the Bears on Facebook and Instagram.
