The NYU men and women's cross country teams both posted third-place finishes at the NCAA Division III Atlantic Region Championship in Geneseo, N.Y., on Saturday.
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The men totaled 79 points, which was just behind SUNY-Cortland (49 points) and SUNY-Geneseo (64 points). They needed at least a second-place finish to earn an automatic bid for the NCAA National Championship, but are still expected to secure one of the 16 remaining at-large bids to the championship.
"The men's race was a real battle," head coach Nick McDonough said. "We had some issues that kept us from finishing in the top two, but I'm sure we'll smooth them out before nationals next week."
The top runner for the Violets was senior co-captain Zach Maher, who placed third overall with a time of 24:56.1 in the 8K race.
Also cracking the top 10 was senior co-captain Calvin Lee, who finished ninth with a time of 25:29.8.
Juniors Sebastian Schwelm (15th, 25:35.1) and Matt Turlip (21st, 25:49.9), as well as sophomore Ryan Boyd (31st, 26:05.8), also placed for the Violets.
The women's third-place finish is the highest in the team's history. The women amassed 138 points, finishing behind St. Lawrence University (43 points) and SUNY-Geneseo (74 points).
"The women ran great and are ecstatic about their performance," McDonough said. "It's the first time where both the men and women's teams have been good enough for nationals."
The top finisher for the women's team was sophomore Joan Kanarkiewicz, who finished 10th overall, covering the 6K course in 22:30.9.
Freshman Kirsten Keller also placed in the top 20, running a 22:49.9 to finish 19th.
The Violets still have a chance to receive one of the 16 at-large bids for the NCAA National Championship. But even if they don't secure a bid, their performance in the regional championship was a significant improvement over last year's 10th-place finish.
If both teams secure at-large bids, the men and women's squads will return to action Nov. 21 in the NCAA Division III National Championship at Baldwin-Wallace College.
