University of Massachusets Athletics
NCAA Regionals Will Test Women's Cross Country
November 11, 2010 | Women's Cross Country
Nov. 11, 2010
AMHERST, Mass. - As the 2010 season winds down, the UMass women's cross country team will head to Madison, Conn. for the NCAA Regional Championships at Hammonasset State Park. The meet will be held on Saturday, Nov. 13 at 11:00 a.m. as the Minutewomen will look to conclude the final stretch run of the season.
The 2010 Atlantic 10 Championships

UMass last competed at the A-10 Championships on Oct. 30 where the team notched an eighth place finish out of the 14 teams in the conference. Karen Roa captured an 18th place finish by crossing at 18:16, leading the team for the second time this season.
Elizabeth Fisk finished in 38th place out of the 139 total runners with a mark of 18:41. Gina Perno (43rd place) and Courtney Baldwin (45th place) were close behind as both crossed at 18:45. Claire Pettit rounded out the top five finishers for UMass, taking 56th place with a time of 19:01.
Also of note was freshman Mary Cole who grabbed 59th place overall with a time of 19:02 in her first conference meet.
Last Year's Regionals
At last year's NCAA Regional Championships, the Minutewomen placed 20th out of the 35 teams competing. Courtney Baldwin (22:55) paved the way for UMass, taking 23rd place out of the 243 runners in the 6k. Shiyi Zan grabbed a 96th place finish (24:22) while Karen Roa finished in 135th place (24:59).
First Points

Freshman Mary Cole became the second Minutewomen to score the first points of her career. Cole placed fourth on the team with a time of 19:03 at the Rothenberg Race held on Oct. 15 in Rhode Island. At the UMass Home Meet, freshman Sarah Barrett scored the first points in her UMass career by placing in the team's top five finishers. Barrett crossed at 18:54 which slotted her at 28th overall and fifth on the team.
Home Meet

UMass played host to four teams (Maine, Boston College, Vermont, Amherst) a month ago at the UMass Home Meet (9/18) with the Minutewomen taking fourth place with 78 points. Courtney Baldwin headlined the finishers for the second straight week, taking fifth place overall with a time of 17:58. Senior Gina Perno grabbed a 12th place finish (18:18) while junior Karen Roa was close behind in 15th place at 18:24. Elizabeth Fisk (18:37) and Sarah Barrett (18:54) rounded out the top five finishers for UMass with respective 19th and 28th place finishes.
Division I Debuts
At the B.C. Invite on Sept. 11, six UMass runners made their Division I Cross Country debuts: Sarah Barrett, Christine McNaughton, Caroline Conena, Melody Lam, Caprice Cappuci, Nicole Bishop.
Captains
Seniors Kristin Darling and Lauren Stocker will captain this year's XC team. Darling did not see any cross country action in 2009 but competed throughout the indoor and outdoor track seasons. Stocker was a UMass top-five finisher in five out of six meets and also added a 49th place finish at the A-10 Championships by crossing at 21:24.
Baldwin's Back
As a freshman, Courtney Baldwin made an instant impact on the team's success in 2009. At the New England Championships on Oct. 10 Baldwin ran in the first cross country meet of her life, placing first on the team and 16th overall with a time of 18:22. She proceeded to place first on the team over the course of the final three meets and by season's end had racked up A-10 All-Conference honors, the A-10 Rookie of the Year award, a ninth place finish at the A-10 Championships, three A-10 Rookie Performer of the Week awards (Oct. 12-31), and one A-10 Performer of the Week award (Oct. 12).
Stellar Seniors

The Minutewomen currently boast two strong seniors that should provide the squad with consistency for the 2010 campaign. Redshirt senior Shiyi Zan finished inside the team's top-five finishers in all five meets she competed in and was the team's second place finisher in the last four meets of the 2009 season. The Ottawa, Ontario, native received 2009 A-10 Academic All-Conference Honors and was also named the 2009 UMass Women's Fall Scholar Athlete. Gina Perno will also return in 2010, and was a model of consistency throughout the 2009 season. Perno ran in all seven of the team's meets and placed inside the squad's top-five finishers in six of them.
Dynamic Duo

Experienced juniors Karen Roa and Claire Pettit found success last year and will look to continue the trend. At the A-10 Championships on Oct. 31, Roa placed third on the team and 19th overall with a time of 20:40. Pettit posted a time of 20:47 at the meet and finished fourth on the team and 26th overall. The duo combined to place in the squad's top-five finishers on 11 occasions, and will look to improve upon this number for the coming season.
