Saint Mary's finished its season Saturday with a top-20 finish at the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regionals at Yule Golf Course in Anderson, Ind.
The Belles recorded a team score of 515 to finish 19th in the field of 33 teams. Senior Elizabeth Majewski said the Belles exceeded their expectations by placing in the top 20 at the regional meet.
"Overall, it was a great end to the season," she said. "The team raced competitively and placed in the top-20 teams, which was a goal of ours for regionals."
Junior Jessica Biek paced the Belles, finishing 70th in the field of 234 runners with a time of 23:45.43. Majewski said Biek has been valuable to the Belles in only her first season on the team.
"Jess has done incredible in her first cross country season and will continue to be a great asset to the team next year," Majewski said.
Senior Emma Baker finished second for the Belles and 87th overall with a time of 24:11.23, while senior Julia Kenney finished third for Saint Mary's with a time of 24:43.97.
Additionally, senior Sarah Copi recorded her personal best time in the 6-kilometer in her final college race, finishing the course in a time of 24:54.68. Majewski said Copi has been a consistent contributor to the Belles throughout the last four years.
"Sarah has continued to improve over her four years and finished her season with a really great race," Majewski said.
Two of the Belles' fellow MIAA conference members finished in the top three of the regional meet. Hope won the meet with 91 points, while Calvin finished third with 103 points.
The regional race marked the final competition for the Belles' six seniors. Majewski said she was impressed with the performances of her classmates.
"As one of six seniors on the team, I am very proud of my teammates and their performances," she said. "It will be hard to leave this group of girls when we graduate."
Although the Belles failed to live up to their lofty top-10 preseason regional ranking, Majewski, who finished 135th overall, said the team achieved a lot over the course of the season.
"Everyone on the team has come so far this season, achieving both personal and team goals," she said. "All of the girls on the team work toward similar goals, and this is what has made our team successful."
Contact Brian Hartnett at bhartnet@nd.edu
