INDIANAPOLIS - Four members of the Swarthmore College Cross Country program qualified for the NCAA Division III National Championships, announced by the NCAA Division III Men's and Women's Track and Field and Cross Country Committee on Sunday.
Nora Blodgett and
Rose Teszler will represent the Garnet in the women's 6K championship race at 11:00 a.m. EST, while
Aidan Cantine and
Atticus Hempel will compete in the men's 8K championship race at noon.
At the Metro Regional Championship on Saturday, Blodgett and Teszler led the Garnet to a runner-up finish with 102 points. Swarthmore finished second out of 24 teams. The meet was comprised of 157 finishers. Blodgett crossed the finish line in fifth place with a time of 22:26.5 in the 6K race. Teszler earned a top ten finish with a time of 22:43.2, and crossed the line in tenth place.
On Saturday, Cantine and Hempel led Swarthmore to a third place finish out of 21 teams with 116 points. Cantine finished the 8K championship race in fifth place with a time of 25:27.9. Hempel was just two spots behind Cantine as the first-year finished the event in seventh place with a time of 25:46.
Athletes of member institutions who finish in the top-40 of their respective races this upcoming weekend at the 2021 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships in Louisville, Kentucky, earn the distinction. Sarah Hobbs, who earned All-American status in 2004, is the only Swarthmore runner to earn this accolade.
In order to be eligible to participate in the championships, teams and individuals had to qualify in their respective NCAA regional competitions that was held this weekend. Thirty-two teams were selected to participate in each championship. The top seven-person team automatically qualified from each of the 10 regions, for a total of 10 teams. Twenty-two additional teams were selected at-large.
Seventy individuals, the first seven student-athletes from each region who are not a part of a qualifying team, were selected to participate in each championship. The list of advancing teams and individuals is outlined in the official release link in this story.
Spalding University and the Louisville Sports Commission are hosting the championships November 20th at E.P. Tom Sawyer State Park in Louisville, Kenturcky. The women's race will begin at 11 a.m. Eastern, followed by the men's race at Noon Eastern. A live webstream of the championships will occur on www.NCAA.com beginning at 11 a.m. Eastern until the conclusion of the awards ceremony. Both this story and the schedules will be updated when live links become available.
Women's Race:
Live Results / Live Video
Men's Race:
Live Results / Live Video
