Probable Top Five:

SR Emily Stites (9:11 3K; 15:43 5K; 32:41 10K; 3rd NCAA 10K ’15; 36th NCAA XC ’14)
SR Carolyn Hennessey (16:11 5K; CAA XC Champ ’14; 2nd Southeast Regional XC ’14)
SO Regan Rome (16:23 5K; 90th NCAA XC ’14)
SR Meghan McGovern (9:26 3K; 16:22 5K; 35:37 10K; 139th NCAA XC ’14)
SO Molly Breidenbaugh (9:39 3K; 16:49 5K)

 

Impact Freshmen/Transfers: 

N/A
 

Analysis: 

William & Mary stunned the Kolas world during the 2014 season by winning the Southeast region over heavily favored teams Virginia, North Carolina and NC State. Their biggest factor was Emily Stites’ clutch 25th place showing in her first cross country meet of 2014. Stites was 26th in 2012 and 46th in 2013 at the national meet. After running 32:41 in the 10K during the 2014 outdoor season, it appeared she may have suffered an injury that kept her out of most of this past fall. The team really couldn’t have asked for any more from her though in that regional race. She was William & Mary’s fifth scorer, clinching the title and birth to the NCAA Championships.

Stites was third in the 2015 NCAA outdoor 10K and will be so much better than her 36th place cross country showing in the fall. Her senior partner Carolyn Hennessey stepped up when Stites was out by winning the CAA Championship and finishing second in the region. The two could be a deadly duo come fall, but the next three runners will be what really matters here. Regan Rome and Meghan McGovern will need to pack up as close to Stites and Hennessey as possible because their fifth scorer could be quite far away. Sophomore Molly Breidenbaugh ran well as a true freshman in 2014 and hopefully that experience will translate into more success this fall.