Wellesley Cross Country Takes Second at NEWMACs; Marks Wins Individual Title
WELLESLEY, Mass. -- Wellesley College senior Ari Marks (Eagle Point, Ore.) took first place overall to lead the Blue cross country team to a runner-up finish at the 2021 New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Women's Cross Country Championship on Saturday at Wellesley's Nehoiden Golf Club.
Marks finished in 21:48.9 to earn NEWMAC Runner of the Year honors, becoming the first Wellesley runner to win the award since Randelle Boots '13 earned the honor in both 2010 and 2011. MIT captured the team title for the 14th consecutive season, taking first with 34 points. The Blue finished 16 points ahead of third place Smith College (79 points). Mount Holyoke (91) took fourth place and WPI (113) was fifth.
Marks was one of four Wellesley runners to earn All-Conference honors on Saturday. All-Conference honors were awarded to the top 17 finishers in the race. Senior Maya Bradbury (Freeport, Maine) was eighth with a 6k PR of 22:59.9, while juniors Claire Anderson (Denver, Colo.) and Ellie Murphy-Weise (San Francisco, Calif.) tied for 15th and 16th place with matching PR times of 23:24.9.
Senior Lily Herold was the final scoring runner for the Blue, earning a 24th place finish with a PR of 23:46.8. Racing in her first NEWMAC Championship, sophomore Maddie Carrington (Morris, Minn.) took 46th in 24:40.9. Senior Amy Tao (Hong Kong, China) was 68th in 25:22.9 while sophomore Wen Li Yau (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) was 77th in 25:38.6 for the Blue.
Wellesley returns to action on Saturday, November 13 at the 2021 NCAA Division III New England Regional at Franklin Park in Boston, Mass.
2021 NEWMAC Women's Cross Country Championship
Team Results
- MIT – 34 points
- Wellesley – 63 points
- Smith – 79 points
- Mount Holyoke – 91 points
- WPI – 113 points
- Coast Guard – 154 points
- Springfield – 205 points
- Wheaton – 234 points
- Emerson – 287 points
- Clark – 293 points
- Babson – 317 points
2021 NEWMAC Women's Cross Country All-Conference
NEWMAC Runner of the Year: Ari Marks, Wellesley
NEWMAC Rookie of the Year: Pria Parker, Smith
All-Conference Team (Top 17 Finishers)
- Ari Marks, Wellesley
- Izzi Gengaro, MIT
- Olivia Rosenstein, MIT
- Lauren Selkin, Mount Holyoke
- Laurel Kruger, Smith
- Sarah Bentley, MIT
- Pria Parker, Smith
- Maya Bradbury, Wellesley
- Grace Hadley, WPI
- Madeline Rieders, Mount Holyoke
- Anna Chau, MIT
- Anna Haddad, MIT
- Hannah Rieders, Mount Holyoke
- Archana Mohandas, MIT
- Claire Anderson, Wellesley
- Ellie Murphy-Weise, Wellesley
- Simone Jacob, Mount Holyoke