NORTHAMPTON, Mass. — The Smith College cross country team opens the 2026 season Saturday, Sept. 12 at the Trinity Invitational in Hartford, Connecticut, beginning a fall that brings the NEWMAC Championship to Northampton on Oct. 31 and returns nine runners from a squad that placed fourth in the conference a season ago.

Smith will host twice this fall. The Bears welcome the field to the Ellen O'Neil Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 19 at 10 a.m., then return home six weeks later for the NEWMAC Championship on Saturday, Oct. 31 at 11 a.m.

The Bears scored 141 points at the 2025 NEWMAC Championship at Highland Park in Attleboro, Massachusetts, finishing fourth in the 12-team field behind MIT (24), the U.S. Coast Guard Academy (66) and Wellesley (112). Lucy Kreipke (Princeton, NJ/Princeton) led Smith with a 13th-place finish in 22:53.1 over the 6K course to earn All-NEWMAC honors, and Avery Grace Maiese (Waterford, CT/Waterford High School) followed as the Bears' second scorer in 28th at 23:54.1. Both return in 2026, along with Catherine Collins (Westfield, NJ/Westfield), Amie Gronert (Milwaukee, WI/Shorewood), Sofia Jurusz (Wildwood Crest, NJ/Middle Township), Elise Kennedy (Middletown, CT/Middletown), Indie Lamb (Barrington, RI/Barrington High School), Abby Lei (Holden, MA/Wachusett Regional High School) and Annika Wells (Ashland, OR/Ashland High School). Six newcomers join the roster under Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Jack Wood.

Between the two home dates, Smith travels to the KSC Invitational in Keene, New Hampshire, on Oct. 3, the James Earley Invitational at Stanley Park in Westfield, Massachusetts, on Oct. 10, and the Connecticut College Invitational at Harkness Park in Waterford, Connecticut, on Oct. 17. Qualifiers advance to the NCAA Mideast Regional on Nov. 14 at Trinity Wickham Park in Manchester, Connecticut, and the NCAA Championship on Nov. 21 in Northfield, Minnesota.

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Smith opens the season Saturday, Sept. 12 at the Trinity Invitational in Hartford, Connecticut.

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.