SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. -- The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women's cross country team had seven of the top eight finishers, led by a one-two finish from Riley Capuano and Elle Marsyla, as well as nine of the top 11 as it dominated the field to take first place at the Coyote Challenge, hosted by CSU San Bernardino on Saturday morning.
The Athenas finished with 18 points, barely off the lowest possible score of 15, easily outdistancing Concordia Irvine in second place with 49 points. Host CSU San Bernardino was third with 81 points, with Redlands fourth (124) and La Verne fifth (145).
Capuano broke 18 minutes over the 5K race in hot conditions, finishing in 17:53.3 to pick up where she left off last cross country season, when she won SCIAC and NCAA West Regional championships on her way to her second straight All-America honor.
Marsyla came in second with an 18:00.4, returning to action after missing last year's cross country season with an injury. Marsyla also earned All-America honors in 2023, helping CMS to a fourth-place finish.
The Athenas then had the fourth through eighth runners cross the line in quick succession, with Sadie Drucker earning fourth place in 18:13.3. She was followed by Jie Yi Denise Chen in fifth in 18:19.1, with Sara Wexler just over two seconds behind in 18:21.5 to secure the team title.
Brannan Rosenfeld earned seventh place in 18:29.2, and Olivia Backholm (eighth) and Emily Kendrick (tenth) also earned top 10 finishes), with Sally Gaskell right behind in 11th. Kylie Brunelli had a strong debut in 16th place, with Talia Green in 17th, and Mia Voce, who ran middle distance for the track and field team, took 20th in her first cross country meet. Jenna Milbrodt (24th), Skye Georgiadis (27th) and Phoebe Wolfe Lyons (29th) also broke 20 minutes for the Athenas.
CMS will be back in action when it travels to the Division III Pre-Nationals on Saturday, Sept. 20 in Spartanburg, S.C.
– Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Athletics
