Junior Jillian Richardson and senior Tara Ellard both earned All-America honors as they led the Bates women's cross country team to a 16th-place finish out of 32 teams at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships, held Saturday at E.P. Tom Sawyer State Park.
Richardson (Auburn, Maine) placed 33rd and Ellard (Brewster, Mass.) placed 39th out of 293 individuals in the race, both earning their first career All-America honors for their top-40 finish. Richardson, Bates' frontrunner in every race of her two-season career thus far, finished the 6-kilometer course in 21:42.7, while Ellard was close behind in 21:50.2, completing the team captain's outstanding senior season.
The 17th-ranked Bobcats fared one place better than their ranking, scoring 481 points to finish three points behind 15th-place Wellesley and five points in front of 17th-place Calvin College.
