The Case Western Reserve University women's cross country team put itself in position to potentially qualify for the NCAA Division III Championships next weekend, after placing fourth at the 2021 NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional Championships at Blue Lake Park in Shelbyville, Indiana on Saturday afternoon.
The Spartans were led on Saturday by the first career all-region finishes by seniors Jana Fisher and Susanna Henry. Fisher placed fourth overall out of 266 runners at the meet with a career-best 6K time of 22:05.1. By virtue of the fourth-place finish, Fisher secured a spot in the NCAA Championships as an individual, should the team not qualify.
Henry added a 23rd-place finish with a time of 22:46.7, also marking a career-best time.
Adding a career-best mark was junior Catherine Phillips, who narrowly missed all-region honors (awarded to the top-35 finishers) with a 38th-place finish in a time of 23:07.4. The Spartans final two scoring finishers also notched career-best times, with senior Julia Kocherzat crossing the finish line in 48th-place with a time of 23:20.2, and sophomore Jessica Kwasny in 53rd-place with a time of 23:23.1.
The Spartans final two finishers on Saturday were graduate student Grace Kemerer, who placed 91st overall with a season-best time of 24:00.2, and first-year Medha Patria, with a 98th-place finish in a time of 24:10.2.
Hope won the Great Lakes Regional Championship with a score of 98, followed by Calvin in second place with a score of 121, and John Carroll in third with a score of 125. The Spartans were the fourth finishing team with a score of 164.
Trine's Evie Bultemeyer was the individual champion with a time of 21:16.2.
In addition to the top-finishing team at each regional championship another 22 at-large teams will be selected, along with the top seven individual runners at each regional not part of a qualifying team. The field for the men's and women's championships will be posted to NCAA.com no later than 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, November 14. CWRU will be aiming for its first team showing at the NCAA Championships since 2010.
