Both Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Win NCAA Regionals, Advance to the National Championship
Both MIT’s Men’s and Women’s Cross Country teams won the NCAA East Regional Championship and secured spots at the Division III National Championship on November 23rd in Terre Haute, Indiana.
The men’s team, ranked 20th in the nation, was led by Samir Amin ’25 who placed fourth overall in a time of 24:46.81 on the 8K course. The scoring positions were rounded out by Sam Coutts ’25, Pablo Arroyo ’25, Renne Cooper ’28, and Yichen Sun ’27. The Engineer’s scoring five runners all placed in the top fourteen. In total, MIT scored 43 points, beating out Tufts (61) and WPI (128). This year’s victory extends the winning streak that the Engineers have had in the East Regional Championship since 2021.
The women’s team, ranked first in the nation, was led by Lexi Fernandez ’26 who placed tenth overall in a time of 22:16.77 on the 6K course. The scoring positions were rounded out by Kate Sanderson ’26, Ava Hartman ’28, Heather Jensen ’27, and Gillian Roeder ’25. All five scoring runners placed in the top fifteen and all seven runners placed in the top 35. MIT scored 56 points, beating out Tufts (67) and Bates (147). This year’s victory extends the winning streak that the Engineers have had in the East Regional Championship since 2021.
Both teams will be competing at the Division III National Championship on November 23rd in Terre Haute, Indiana. The Men’s team won the national title in 2022 and finished 8th in 2023. The Women’s team finished 7th in 2022 and 11th in 2023.