"We pulled off the upset of the season, for sure," said Coach Deb Aitken of the women's cross-country team's number-four finish at the New England Division III meet on November 11 in Massachusetts. The team's best ranking of the year had been sixth in New England, but when six out of seven runners posted their best times of the season, despite adverse conditions, the Mules earned a team berth in the national NCAA Division III Cross Country Championship meet, held November 18 in Spokane, Wash.

At the New England meet, Mary Phelps '04 ran a lifetime personal best (18:31.05) and cut 1:10 off her previous record to finish 17th. Sarah Getchell '04, the only one who didn't register a season's best time, was only one second behind her personal best with 19:19.30. Colby's top runner, Maria Mensching '02, ran the 5,000-meter course in 17:44.40, 18 seconds off the winning pace and fourth across the finish line.

A week later the team left for the national meet in Spokane on a 6:45 a.m. flight. Airline trouble delayed their arrival in Washington until 3 a.m. Eastern time. The next day the sleep-deprived squad faced a snow-covered course and 28-degree temperatures–all without their top runner, Mensching, out with medical problems. Add those setbacks to the jitters accompanying seven runners who had never competed at the national level and the possibility of disaster, or at least embarrassment, was in the air.

"I wouldn't say we ran badly; we ran tentatively," Aitken said. First in for Colby was Tiffany Frazar '01, who finished 55th among team runners and 86th overall with a time of 19:15.9–a strong effort, Aitken said. Colby was 24th among the 24 teams that qualified for the nationals, but all seven runners avoided what they most feared–being last across the finish.

"We had a wonderful trip. It was a great experience," Aitken said. "It truly inspired everyone who went to nationals to make the necessary improvements to qualify again next year." And with just two members of the squad graduating–Katie Macdonald and Kate Isley–look for another strong effort in 2001.