The Emory women's cross country team raced to a first-place finish at the NCAA South/Southeast Region Championships on Saturday. This year's competition was held at the Clara Bowl Course on the campus of Berry College. The Eagles' performance enabled them to capture an automatic bid to next Saturday's (Nov. 17) NCAA D-III Championships in Winnecone, Wisconsin.
Competing in a 32-team field, 19th-ranked Emory recorded 83 points, well ahead of runner-up Centre College's mark of 106 points. Washington and Lee was third with 116 points while Trinity (Tex.) and Berry College rounded out the top five with 131 and 155 points, respectively. Emory's showing represented the fourth time in the past five seasons that it finished first and the 28th straight year of the program finishing second or better at the Regional Championships.
Six of the Eagles' seven runners ranked among the top 35 overall finishers, earning all-region honors in the process. Senior Kaylee Slade led the Emory contingent for the sixth time in as many outings this season, clocking a 6K time of 22:55 that placed seventh overall out of 237 entries. Senior Kayla O'Shea was the second Eagle to cross the finish line with an effort of 23:16 which slotted her in the No. 13 spot. Sophomore Carrie McIntyre was Emory's third finisher and 17th in the field, checking in with a showing of 23:28. Sophomore Susie Martin (23:30) and freshman Zoe Friedman (23:49) rounded out the team's scorers, placing 20th and 26th, respectively. Sophomore Abby Durfee brought home all-region accolades after registering a 24:04 that placed her 31st. Senior Maeve Andrews also took to the course and finished 47th in the field at 24:34.
The Emory women's cross country team won the 2018 NCAA South/Southeast Championships.