Lehigh University Athletics
Friday, November 9
University Park, Pa.
12:00:00 PM
Lehigh University
vs
NCAA Mid-Atlantic Qualifiers
Mountain Hawks finish 15th at Mid-Atlantic Regionals
11/9/2012 9:04:00 PM | Women's Cross Country
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh women's cross country team finished 15th out of 31 competing squads at the Mid-Atlantic Regionals in University Park, Pa. The Mountain Hawks recorded a combined score of 457 points, finishing just six points behind Loyola (Md.). Senior Julia Perry was Lehigh's top performing runner, taking 62nd after crossing the line in 22:14 on the 6K course.
"I have a mixed reaction to today's race," said head coach Debbie Utesch. "I think we could have run better as a team, but we did hit our goal of finishing in the top 15 in the region. If we would have run as well as we did at the Patriot League Championships, I think we could have been closer to 10th."
Along with Perry, sophomore Ingrid Simon was Lehigh's second finisher, placing 93rd after running the race in 22:54. Finishing just two seconds behind her was junior Hannah Pierce who took home 99th with a time of 22:56. Senior co-captain Tori Berard was the fourth Mountain Hawk to cross the finish line, taking 101st (22:58), while senior Amanda Gosselin finished one place behind her with a time of 22:59. Junior Jessica Kendzor (23:04) and freshman Carlie Skellington (25:30) rounded out the Lehigh runners as they finished 109th and 194th, respectively.
"We knew the first mile of the course was very fast and we were happy that the girls were able to get out aggressively, but they just couldn't keep that pace through the last mile," said Utesch. "We had a lot of first timers at this level of the competition and we reached our goal of the top 15 in the Region, but we are going to build on that goal for the future."
Host Penn State won the race, finishing three runners inside the top 10 for an overall score of 61 points to edge Georgetown (63), while Villanova took third with 96 points. The individual winner was Nicky Akande, a junior from Villanova, who finished the 6K race in 20:14, beating La Salle senior Meghan McGlinchey by nine seconds.
"Some of the top teams in the region ran today including Penn State on their home course," said Utesch. "All of the competition is prepared to race at the highest level when you get to these national meets and you can't take anything for granted with the top teams in the region competing."
MHT EP5 - Women's Cross Country
Thursday, November 13
Lehigh Sports Central: Women's Cross Country
Wednesday, October 15
2025 Lehigh Women's Cross Country Season Preview
Thursday, August 28
Lehigh Sports Central: Women's Cross Country
Wednesday, October 09
