Hope women's cross country reaches NCAA finals for 13th straight season; 2 men going
HOLLAND - The Hope College women's cross country team will continue a popular trend.
The Flying Dutch will compete at the NCAA Division III Championships for the 13th consecutive time this weekend after receiving an at-large berth on Sunday.
The 32-team women's field will race on a 6K course on Saturday, Nov. 18, at noon at Big Spring High School in Newville, Pennsylvania. Dickinson College is the host school.
No. 17-ranked Hope is one of 22 teams that received at-large berths.
Ten teams earned automatic berths by winning their regional on Saturday. Seventy individuals, the first seven student-athletes from each region who were not part of a qualifying team, also were selected to participate in each championship.
The Flying Dutch finished third out of 40 teams at the Great Lakes Regional on Saturday in Norton, Ohio.
Junior Maddy Struck (Hainesville, Illinois / Grayslake Central HS) led Hope at the Great Lakes Regional by clocking a third-place time of 20 minutes, 49.2 seconds for the 6,000-meter course.
Senior Rebecca Markham (Hoffman Estates, Illinois / William Fremd) crossed the finish line in 14th place with a run of 21:20.2.
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Senior Olivia Quillan (Grandville, Michigan / Calvin Christian) was Hope's No. 3 runner in 25th place at 21:35.7.
Senior Libby Gorman (Traverse City, Michigan / St. Francis) was 30th in 21:44.8.
Struck, Markham, Quillan, and Gorman received All-Region honors for their top-35 performances.
Men's Cross Country
Two Men's Cross Country Runners Heading to NCAA ChampionshipsConnor Vachon is returning to the NCAA Division III Men's Cross Country Championships, and the Hope College junior is bringing a teammate with him.
Sophomore Ian Petruska (Fort Collins, Colorado / Fort Collins HS) and Vachon (Jenison, Michigan / Jenison) advanced to this week's 8K national meet as individual qualifiers.
It is the first time since 2006 that the Flying Dutchmen will have multiple runners competing at the NCAA Championships. Ryan TerLouw and Seth Weener last accomplished the feat together.
This year's national meet is on Saturday, Nov. 18, at 11 a.m. at Big Spring High School in Newville, Pennsylvania.
Vachon is making his second trip to the NCAA Division III Championships and the second in a row.
On Saturday, Vachon topped Hope at the Great Lakes Regional in Norton, Ohio, by recording an eighth-place run of 24 minutes, 4.8 seconds.
Petruska was the second from Hope to cross the finish line and finished 14th in 24:23.7.
Both Vachon and Petruska claimed All-Region recognition.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Hope women's cross country reaches NCAA finals for 13th straight season
