The Quakers came, saw, but ultimately did not conquer a berth to NCAA Nationals last Friday.
Penn cross country entered competition in Bethlehem, Pa. as the heavy underdog behind three United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches’ Association (USTFCCCA) top-17 teams on the women's side. USTFCCCA No. 7 West Virginia ultimately captured both the regional and individual title with 2024 First-Team All-American Joy Naukot crossing the line in a dominant 19:11 minute performance in the women's 6-kilometer race.
Georgetown nabbed an automatic qualification to Nationals with a runner-up finish, while third and fourth place finishers Penn State and Villanova clinched at-large berths. Ivy League champion Princeton also punched two individual tickets to nationals for individual Ivy League champion Anna McNatt and runner-up Meg Madison.
The Quakers ended the competition on the women’s team with a sixth place finish out of 30 teams fielded. Top performer and two-time USTFCCCA All-Region selection senior Lily Murphy was notably once again absent from the competition.
Junior Sarah Fischer led the campaign with a 32nd-place finish in a personal-best 20:39 for an impressive debut appearance at an NCAA Regional competition. All-Ivy selections senior Anna Weirich and junior Gabby Jones finished close behind, coming in at 20:50 and 20:59 for 37th- and 41st-place finishes, respectively. Freshman Izzy Rodriguez and sophomore Courtney Kaiser rounded out the scoring finishes with personal-best performances. The core group stuck together throughout the race, with a finish differential of 53 seconds between Fischer and Kaiser.
On the men’s side, the Quakers faced fierce competition from USTFCCCA No. 18 and Ivy League champion Princeton, Patriot League champion Navy, and Big East runner-up Georgetown. While Navy was upset by both Villanova and Penn State and missed out on an at-large bid, Princeton and Georgetown nabbed the region’s automatic qualifier spots. Georgetown fielded Penn alumnus and 2024 individual National qualifier Luke Johnson, who finished 11th in the region.
The Quakers ultimately finished tenth in the region, outperforming their previous regional ranking. Notably, the NCAA Regional tournament is the only time the Quaker men compete in a 10-kilometer race during the cross-country season. Unlike many of their competitors, the Penn men essentially enter the race blind, with first-time competitors not having any prior experience with a 10k cross-country race save for scrimmages or practice runs.
Academic All-Ivy junior Kofi Fordjour led the Quaker men with a personal-best finish of 30:51 to come in 38th place. Sophomore Shane Murphy recovered from a lackluster showing at Heps, moving twenty places throughout the duration of the race to finish in a personal-best 31:16. Seasoned veterans senior Sahil Dodda, junior Nicholas Carpenter, and junior George Keen were close behind Murphy to round out the scoring finishes. Non-scorers sophomore Esfan Daya and freshman Shamus Larnard shone in their first regional appearance, both nabbing personal bests.
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Although no current Penn students are competing at the NCAA Division I National Championships, Johnson and 2024 All-American alumnus Dylan Throop are set to start on Saturday at Gans Creek, competing for Georgetown and Notre Dame, respectively.
While the cross-country season may be over, Penn distance fans can still look forward to the Penn Opener on December 5th and 6th to kick off indoor track and field competition.
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