Both the men's and women's cross country teams competed in the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Cross Country Championships, at Wickham Park in Connecticut, hosted by NESCAC rival Trinity College.

The men's team was led by Mike Bienkowski '10, who finished the eight kilometer course in 28:06, good for 55th place overall. Bienkowski was followed by Andy Maguire '11, Tom Letourneau '13 and Justin Rouse '12, who all finished within a few seconds of each other in 94th, 96th and 97th places respectively. The combined team effort worked to an overall score of 332, falling to the 11th position of 11 teams. Williams College, ranked 15th in the nation, won the race with an overall score of 40.

In the women's race, the team was led by Co-captain Katrina Gravel '10, who finished the six-kilometer course in 22:31, the tenth fastest time overall. Co-captain Cassi Knight '10, who had missed most of the season with an injury, finished just behind in thirteenth place. Emma Linhard '11 and Greta Wells '11 came in behind them, within a few seconds of each other and finishing in 35th and 38th respectively overall. The team as a whole scored 126 points, good for fifth place. "Gravel and Knight obviously had great races. We knew that the highest we could probably place was 4th, and that was a stretch. Finishing 5th was where I thought we should be. We beat Tufts and stayed ahead of Bowdoin and Bates, so it was a good meet," Head Coach Deb Aitken said. Middlebury College, ranked eighth nationally, won the race with a score of 49 points.

  Up next for the Mule runners is the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship Race, on Saturday in Williamstown, Mass. Runners hope to qualify for both individual and team spots in NCAA regionals, and the race is sure to be an exciting one for all fans of Colby cross country.