AMHERST, Mass. – The Connecticut College men's and women's cross country teams competed at the 2023 NESCAC Championships on Saturday afternoon at the UMass Amherst cross country course.

The women's team placed fourth overall with 130 points, notching the program's best finish in the history of the event. Abigail Fernald (Avon, Conn.) finished fifth overall to claim All-NESCAC First Team honors.

On the men's side, the Camels placed seventh overall with 214 points. Brendan Mellitt (Cheshire, Conn.) set the pace for Conn and finished 19th in the field of 154 runners.

Conn College will next host the D3 Challenge on Saturday, November 4 at Stenger Farm Park in Waterford, Conn. The first race will begin at 11:00 a.m. 

Women's Race

One of five nationally-ranked teams in the field, the Camels finished behind only Williams, Amherst and Middlebury—all of whom were ranked higher in the latest USTFCCCA poll. The Ephs (40 points) had three runners finish in the top 10—led by Genna Girard's first-place effort—and collected their fourth-straight NESCAC title.

Fernald turned in a phenomenal race, gaining two spots over the final 2.8k and clocking in with a time of 22:24.2. She also tied for the second-highest individual finish by a Conn College runner, and is the first Camel to claim all-league first team status since 2019.

The Camels encountered a rough start that saw several runners fall while racing out of the box. However, the team pulled together and overcame the adversity, and were able to keep Wesleyan, Tufts and Bates behind them in the final results.

The duo of Edin Sisson (Sidney, Maine) and Abigail Williams (Waterville, Maine) were seconds apart and finished 25th and 26th, respectively. Grace McDonough (Londonderry, N.H.) took 34th while Alexa Estes (Virginia Beach, Va.) finished 47th to round out the scoring for the Camels.

Conn's Top 7
Abigail Fernald (5th, 22:24.2)
Edin Sisson (25th, 23:21.2)
Abigail Williams (26th, 23:23.7)
Grace McDonough (34th, 23:34.6)
Alexa Estes (47th, 23:47.2)
Alsacia Timmerman (67th, 23:12.7)
Kiera Tallas (78th, 24:31.4)

Men's Race

Williams (43 points) held off a hard charge by Amherst (58 points) to win its fourth-straight NESCAC title. The Ephs' John Lucey took home individual medalist honors and finished 11 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor.

Mellitt paced the Camels with a time of 26:01.3 while Ethan Bush (Hanover, Mass.) was close behind at 26:07.3 and placed 24th. Ellis Iurilli-Hough (Melrose, Mass.) ran a strong race in his NESCAC debut and was the third Camel to cross the finish in a time of 27:05.8. Chris Davis (Dunstable, Mass.) and Harry Harwood (Woodbury, Conn.) rounded out Conn's top-five and finished 59th and 88th, respectively.

Conn's Top 7
Brendan Mellitt (19th, 26:01.3)
Ethan Bush (24th, 26:07.3)
Ellis Iurilli-Hough (59th, 27:05.8)
Chris Davis (72nd, 27:25.4)
Harry Harwood (88th, 27:51.8)
Robert DiNatale (90th, 27:52.1)
Ronan Staab (95th, 27:56.7)