The Gustavus women’s cross country team placed third at the NCAA Central Regional meet in Grinnell, Iowa on Saturday. The top three finish qualifies the team for the NCAA National meet on November 22 in Hanover, Indiana.
Gustavus placed third with 110 points. Nebraska Wesleyan (105) and Wartburg (109) finished in first and second place. The Gusties nearest competitor for third place was Luther, which finished fourth with 132 points.
Gustavus was led at the 6K race by all-region performers senior Jen Skalko and junior Nicole Petersen. Skalko finished sixth individually with a time of 22:28. Petersen was right behind her in seventh place with a time of 22:30. Skalko earned all-region honors for the second time in her career while Petersen has earned all-region honors each of her three seasons at Gustavus. Wartburg’s Missy Butry won the individual title with a time of 19:28.
Gustavus will now advance to the NCAA National Meet for the second time in the program’s history. The last time the Gusties competed at the national contest was in 1995 when the team placed 13th. This year’s national competition will be hosted by Hanover College in Hanover, Indiana.
NCAA Central Regional Team Results
- Nebraska Wesleyan 105
- Wartburg 109
- Gustavus 110
- Luther 132
- St. Benedict 156
- St. Thomas 168
- St. Olaf 177
- Carleton 242
- Hamline 274
- Coe 275
- Macalester 280
- Grinnell 342
- Concordia 365
- Bethel 394
- St. Mary’s 418
- Loras 456
- Martin Luther 466
- Central 493
- St. Catherine 520
- Cornell 538
- Augsburg 540
- Simpson 563
- Clarke 744
Gustavus Runners
6th Jen Skalko 22:28
7th Nicole Petersen 22:30
21st Ali Cordie 22:58
34th Tasha Pike 23:19
42nd Mollie Lager 23:33
68th Rachel Schwingler 24:08
89th Brianna Vaa 24:40
For complete results of the NCAA Central Regional, click here.