Simpson earns ninth place at NCAA Midwest Regional

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. -- The Simpson College women's cross country team wrapped up the 2021 season with a ninth place finish at the NCAA Division III Midwest Regional hosted by Augustana on Saturday.

No. 3 Wartburg earned an automatic bid to the NCAA DIII Championships with a first-place finish at the meet followed by No. 4 Washington and No. 7 Chicago.

Cat Lucht was the top runner for the Storm as the junior ran the course in 23:07.0 to place 43rd out of 191 competitors. The Des Moines, Iowa product was just over 14 seconds away from earning a spot on the 35-person all-region team.

Crossing the finish line next for Simpson were freshmen Teghan Booth and Alayna Wallace, who each ran the best race of their young careers to finish in the top 65. Booth shaved 41.8 seconds off her previous personal best and Wallace improved her fastest mark by over a minute. Lara Kallem and Emma Angus had nearly identical times to round out the Storm's top-five, while Mackenzie Laughlin and Macie Bopp also competed for the squad.

"It has been a breakthrough season for our women and today did not disappoint," said Heath Moenck, Head Cross Country Coach. "All season we thought we were a top-10 team in the region, so to place ninth was rewarding. Cat Lucht has been a tremendous leader for us all season and she was great today. Our 2-5 runners today were all freshmen, which bodes well for the future of our program."

Women's Results
43. Cat Lucht, 23:07.0
58. Teghan Booth, 23:35.9
64. Alayna Wallace, 23:43.7
68. Lara Kallem, 23:48.2
69. Emma Angus, 23:48.3
101. Mackenzie Laughlin, 24:28.9
DNF Macie Bopp