Engineers Construct Another NEWMAC Double Championship
Men Earn 21st in succession, Women Win 12th
October 27, 2018
From a spectator's point of view the weather could not have been more miserable for the 2018 NEWMAC Cross Country Championship. The rain was constant since early in the morning. The temperature in the low 40's and the wind was blowing harder as the meet progressed. From the runner's point of view, it could not have been better. This weather defines cross country and the Engineers embraced the elements, the men winning their 21st consecutive title with 17 points to runner-up WPI's 52, and the women claiming their 12th in a row with 20 points to WPI's 71.
The Smith College course is quite hilly with a lot of turns, so when you add significant amounts of mud, the pace tends to slow down. MIT worked on group running rather than trying to set any performance records. The men did not take the lead until they had passed three miles, and that was more that everyone else slowed down as the course reached the downhill stage except for the final uphill with about two thirds of a mile to go.
Billy Woltz '20 worked with Andrew Mah '22 and Josh Rosenkranz '19 through four miles before opening up a small lead with 800 to go and then managed to out-sprint Mah to the finish for a three second victory 26:14 to 26:17. The teammates won NEWMAC Runner of the Year and Rookie of the Year respectively. Rosenkranz was another eight seconds back and Josh Derrick '20 at 26:32 was only :18 back of Woltz in fourth. Brian Brooks '22 from WPI broke up the MIT sweep, but Alex Knapp '19 had a career race to finish fifth for MIT and sixth overall in 26:40, giving MIT a 27 second delta through five runners.
Aidan Gilson '19 (26:48) and Kent Slaney '21 (27:01) added all-conference honors for MIT as they placed seventh and ninth respectively. Both Gilson and Slaney will have to step-up to their top five ability if the men are to three-peat as New England region champions in two weeks at Bowdoin College.
The women were without number one runner, Izzi Gengaro '22, who was out for precautionary reasons, but that just gave others the opportunity to show what they could do in the messy conditions. The MIT women did not go out with the leader, sticking with the plan to work on their group running, which brought them through the mile mark in 6:34. Trailing the second place runner until the 1 1/2 mile mark. Jenna Melanson '20 and Leandra Zimmermann '19 took off, opening up an immediate gap on their teammates and other runners. Kaitlyn Mooney '21 from Coast Guard was well out in front by 20 or more seconds, but behind her Tech was putting together quite the team performance.
Katie Bacher '20, making her varsity debut this year after coming back from an achilles tendon injury and a very recent sprained ankle, was in fourth all alone. Einat Gavish '22 and Marissa McPhillips '20 were holding down fifth and sixth a few seconds behind Bacher. Katie Collins '21 was in eighth and trying to make up ground to get up with her teammates.
After another mile and a half and Mooney's victory in 18:39, Melanson finished 21 seconds back in 19:00. Zimmermann was just four seconds back in 19:04. Bacher finished fourth in 19:18, McPhillips in fifth in 19:28 and Gavish in sixth in 19:32. The :32 delta was impressive, especially without Gengaro competing.
Adding to the all-conference list were Collins in eighth, Emily Niu '21 in 12th, Lindsey McAllister '21in 15th and Tessa Weiss '20 in 16th. Gavish earned Rookie of the Year honors as the top finishing freshman.
In two weeks the women will attempt to three-peat at the NCAA New England Region Championship when they compete in that 6K championship at Bowdoin College. |
