PRESQUE ISLE, Maine –  Maine Maritime Academy women's cross country placed three runners in the top 35 to finish seventh out of 10 teams at Saturday's North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Championship hosted by UMaine-Presque Isle.
 
Fifth-year Milo Cook-Sharp (Cape Elizabeth, Maine) was the top finisher for the Mariners, placing 28th out of the 60-runner field, with a time of 31:29.0 on the 6k course. Junior Aubrey Mitchell (Spofford, N.H.) finished 34th with a time of 33:42.6, just ahead of sophomore Kylie Cantlon (Burke, Va.) who placed 35th (33:49.5). First-year Lillian Diversi (Gardiner, Maine) took 47th place (38:45.6)and was followed closely by fifth-year teammate Sarah Smith (Kirkland, Wash.) who rounded out the top-five finishers for the Mariners, placing 48th (39:02.1).
 
Four Husson University runners finished among the top eight to lead the Eagles to the 2023 team title. Lilianna Peters of SUNY Cobleskill won the individual championship with a time of 24:44.8 on the 6K course. Husson teammates Grace Bedore took second at 25:09.7 and Payton Goodwin finished third with a time of 25:16.5. Ava Dowling was sixth for the Eagles at 25:37.3 and teammate Miranda Dunton's clocking of 26:06.8 was good for eighth place.
 
Husson scored 37 points, the same total that won the 2022 Championship. This is the second-straight title for Husson and the fourth in the program's history. SUNY Cobleskill was second this season with 82 points.
 
Peters earned both the NAC Women's Cross Country Runner of the Year and Rookie of the Year awards for her first place finish. This is the third-straight season that a women's runner has earned both the Runner of the Year and Rookie of the Year honors, and it is the eighth time in the history of the championship.
 
Following Husson and Cobleskill in the team results were UMaine-Farmington in third with 87 points followed by SUNY Morrisville (91), SUNY Delhi (118), Thomas (155), Maine Maritime (184), Lesley (186), host Maine-Presque Isle (201) and Eastern Nazarene (215).
 
SUNY Canton could not compete in this year's Championship due to travel issues.
 
The top 15 runners earn All-North Atlantic Conference accolades, with the top eight on the First Team and finishers nine through 15 receiving Second Team honors.
 
First Team All-North Atlantic Conference
Lillianna Peters, SUNY Cobleskill
Grace Bedore, Husson
Payton Goodwin, Husson
Joy Evans, UMaine Farmington
Ivy Murphy, SUNY Morrisville
Ava Dowling, Husson
Katherine Ledermann, SUNY Cobleskill
Miranda Dunton, Husson
 
Second Team All-North Atlantic Conference
Alyssa Freeguard, SUNY Cobleskill
Hannah Nangle, Lesley
Alexus Lennon, SUNY Morrisville
Madison Kennedy, SUNY Morrisville
Katelyn Osborne, UMaine-Presque Isle
Mary Bryant, SUNY Delhi
Anna MacDonald, UMaine-Farmington
 
The Mariners will now prepare for the NCAA DIII Regional Championship, hosted by Suffolk University on Saturday, November 11. The race will take place at the Hopkinton Fairgrounds, in Hopkinton, N.H., and is set to begin at 11:00 pm.