Contact:
Adam Poklop, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, 630-637-5302
Results
WINNECONNE, Wis. (Nov. 16, 2019) – The North Central College women's cross country team earned a pair of All-Region honorees at the NCAA Division III Midwest Region Championship as the Cardinals finished sixth among 35 teams at Lake Breeze Golf Course on Saturday.
Fresh off a first-place finish at the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Championship,
Dianne Barajas sat in 27th-place a little over 2,000 meters into the race before maneuvering into 15th, halfway through the 6,000-meter course. The senior picked off five more runners, clocking a time of 22 minutes and 30.2 seconds to finish tenth and receive one of the region's seven individual qualifying spots to the NCAA National Championship, held Nov. 23 in Louisville, Kentucky.
Jenna Yakesh also kicked it into high gear during the race's second half, climbing nine spots during the final 3,000 meters to finish 26th with a time of 23:01.5. Yakesh joined Barajas in receiving All-Region honors for placing in the top-35 among more than 250 competitors at Saturday's championship.
Next through the line was
Jenna Fiore (23.21.7) in 41st, just ahead of
Julie Kupiec (23:26.5) in 45th, while freshman
Nikki Rong (23:42.6) added a 53rd-place finish. Kathleen Walstom (24:07.8) and
Alexis Henz (24:08) came through the line together in 78th and 79th, rounding out North Central's runners.
No. 2-ranked Washington University (Mo.) totaled 37 points to win its fifth regional title in six years. Behind the Bears, seventh-ranked University of Chicago finished second with 66 points and 15th-ranked University of Wisconsin-La Crosse took third with 116 points, followed by 11th-ranked University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire with 120 points and 29th-ranked Wheaton with 167 points, just ahead of North Central's 174 points.
The NCAA will announce its full list of qualifiers for the Division III National Championship on Sunday at 1 p.m. Eastern.
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