Last weekend, the women's cross country team sat out their top six runners in preparation for the Nov. 16 NCAA Division III Regional Championships, where runners qualify for the National Championships. In their absence, the Jeffs sent out their next seven runners in the ECAC Championships last Saturday. Amherst still managed to place fifth out of 30 teams, signaling the depth of the team.

"A lot of the coaches use the ECAC to determine the last few spots for next week's district race," said Laurel Kilgour '03. "This is my first full cross country season since freshman year so it's exciting to be able to race at Districts as a senior."

Kilgour was the first Amherst woman to cross the finish line. Her time of 25:00 was good enough for 16th place in the race. Kilgour was followed by Margaret Davis '06, who ran the race in 25:10. She finished 21st in the field. Another freshman, Jessamyn Conell-Price, followed Davis in 48th place with a time of 25:52. Sophomores Sarah DeGraaf, Alison Rodriguez and Marcia Griffith and freshman Alison Buechner came next.

The Jeffs next race is the District Regional competition. "We're playing the underdog and trying to surprise people," said Kilgour. "I wouldn't count us out of Nationals. Especially because it's a situation where anything can happen because it's a 6k and everyone in the conference is trying to adjust."