HOPKINTON, N.H. – The Roberts Wesleyan men's and women's cross country teams qualified for the 2023 NCAA DII National Championships with a pair of second place finishes on Saturday at the NCAA Division II East Regional Championships at the Hopkinton Fair Grounds.
This is the ninth straight time the women's team has qualified for nationals and the fourth time overall the men's team has qualified. The top three teams in each region earn a spot at the national championships.
The women's team was led by
Acacia Barber (21:56.5) and
Rachel Horner-Richardson (21:57.3) who finished in third and fourth place, respectively. The team had a total time of 1:52.26 with an average time of 22:29.
The Redhawks finished just behind Southern Connecticut State who won with 58 points. Roberts totaled 70 points.
Kylee Odell was a top-10 finisher crossing the line in 22:21.5 for ninth place.
Zoe Perkins (23:00.2) and
Lydia Roselund (23:11.0) closed out the top five finishers for the Redhawks.
The men's team scored 60 points just behind Southern Conn. St. with 32 points. Roberts had a total team time of 2:28.12 and average time of 31:38.
Owen White took third place with a time of 30:54.2 followed closely by fourth place finisher
Blake Kasper with a time of 31:00.8.
Jackson Doran crossed the line in sixth place posting a time of 31:18.9. The final two point scorers for Roberts were
Theodore Pintabona in 26
th place with a time of 32:28.2 and
Zachary Hall in 27
th with a time of 32:30.4.
Roberts will head to Joplin, Mo. on Sat. Nov. 18 for the final race of the season at the DII National Championships.
