Season ends for W. X-Country

In what has been an up-and-down season for the Penn women's cross country team, the Quakers' last meet, the Heptagonal Championship, was the rock bottom. With one of the deepest and most talented squads in years, and with strong performances at the Boston and Paul Short Invitationals behind it, the Red and Blue seemed primed to challenge for the Ivy League title. But the Quakers never got into high gear and found themselves looking up at six teams when it was over. For all but four of the Penn runners, that was the anticlimactic end to an otherwise strong season. But seniors Maggie Morrow, Jenee Anzelone and Jane Kim and junior Melanie Gesker will each have a shot at redemption. The four will compete in Boston today for the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship. Sophomore Michelle Belsley, the team's No. 2 runner, will not be making the trip due to a torn hip flexor. Each will be trying to take the first step in adding her name to the list of Quakers who have qualified for the NCAA championship meet. Presently, the list is only two deep: Sue Eckel (1986) and Chris Lundy (1989 and 1991). Their first step will be the ECAC Championship, to be held today and tomorrow. The ECAC meet is the Northeast regional qualifying event. Through an elaborate scoring system, in which each team is assigned to a division, the top teams, as well as the top individual performers, will move on to nationals. "We're going for individual times, because we're not going to have a full team," Gesker said. But it is unlikely a Quaker will end up in Fayetteville, Ark., for the NCAA meet. The top times are expected to be in the high 16-minute range. The first-place finisher may get as low as 16 and a half minutes on the 3.1-mile course. That should leave the Quakers' top runners at least two minutes behind the leader. Penn's best time of the year was 18:29.6. The feat was accomplished by Morrow at the Oct. 8 Paul Short Invitational. "It should be a fast race," said Gesker, whose best time this year was 19:12.3. "I'd like to break 19 minutes, maybe even get into the mid-18s." One of the favorites will be fifth-ranked Providence, a squad which has already faced Penn twice this season. The Friars are loaded with talent, starting with star Amy Rudolph, who is the favorite to take the individual title. At the Paul Short, Providence finished six runners under 18:35, even with Rudolph sitting out. That included a meet-best 17:08.0 from sophomore Marie McMahon. The Friars are hoping a strong ECAC finish will lead them to a national championship. "We're all very excited," Gesker said. "We're running against the top competition on the East Coast."