WELLESLEY, MA (October 16, 2016) – Vassar College was the only team to put five runners inside the top 15 Sunday at the 2016 Seven Sisters Cross Country Championships, as the Brewers finished second out of seven teams in action from Wellesley College.

The Brewers finished 10 points behind the Wellesley for the title, as the hosting Blue earned 42 points thanks to having three runners in the top six, while St. Catherine finished 10 points behind Vassar with 62 points.

Vassar put its top seven runners in the top 20 overall finishers, as only Wellesley had five runners inside the top 20. The Brewers got out well, and senior Lucy Balcezak marked up with the race favorites early. Meghan Cook, Laura MacDonald, Erin Clark and Christiana Prater-Lee all were with the first pack of runners, while Caroline Hartman and Cameron Daddis weren't far off with early in the race.

At the 4k mark, the Brewers seemed to be controlling the race but started to break up as St. Catherine and Wellesley started to pick up spots periodically. In the leaders bunch, the Blue were able to get a pair of runners inside of Balcezak, and Wellesley also saw some of their third and fourth runners move up as well which proved to be the difference for the top spot.

Cook regained momentum in the last 1000 meters to close well, as did Prater-Lee and MacDonald for the Brewers, while Daddis was the fifth person over the line right behind MacDonald after finishing with force to pick up very valuable points to help VC hold off St. Catherine. 

Balcezak finished fifth overall for the Brewers, as she ran the 6k course in a personal-best time of 22:51.4, earning All-Seven Sisters accolades. Cook was next over the line for the Brewers with a 23:05.8 for nine points, while Prater-Lee followed Cook six seconds later for 11^th place with a career-best 23:11.4. Both runners earned All-Seven Sisters for their run.

MacDonald earned All-Seven Sisters honors as well after finishing 13^th overall with a time of personal-best 23:17.8, while Daddis was a spot behind MacDonald with a personal-record 23:23.4 in 14^th place for All-Seven Sisters as well. Clark earned 16^th place with a time of 23:26.9, while fellow freshman Hartman was 20^th after running a 23:47.3.

Sophomore Elise Matera ran in her first race of the season on Sunday, but had a nice 6k race as she was 21^st with a time of 23:50.6, while Alex Gittens (24:08.2, 24^th), Katie Voegtlin (24:13.4, 25^th) and Savannah Wiman (24:15.3, 26^th) packed up well in solid performances for all three.

Sophomore Megan Horn was 30^th overall with a time of 24:31.3, Kate Lawson finished with a time of 24:39.3 and senior Jemma Howlett was across the line in 37^th place with a time of 24:48.0. Sophomore Emma Kline recorded a time of 24:54.7 for 40^th place, and Beatrice Land completed the 6k course in 25:40.8 for 56^th place.

"Obviously, we would be happier to be champions, but it was a well fought race," said head coach James McCowan. "We executed the plan well, the women ran the course well, and we kept the race close. Proud of the effort, and it was a much stronger performance than we saw at Saratoga. We are heading in the right direction, and this positions us well for League's and Regionals."

The Brewers will have a weekend off before heading to Geneva, NY on October 29 for the Liberty League Championships, hosted by Hobart and William Smith Colleges.