On Sept. 23, women’s cross country hosted and competed in the Purple Valley Classic, the team’s only home meet of the season. The race took place on Mount Greylock Regional High School’s 6k course, and the Ephs took second place out of six teams with a combined score of 37 points, falling only to MIT, who totaled 23 points. The United States Coast Guard Academy placed third overall with a score of 80 points.
Co-captain Genna Girard ’24 took first place overall and finished the race with a time of 21:44 — a full 48 seconds before the second-place finisher. This win earned Girard the titles of Purple Valley Classic Individual and NESCAC Women’s Cross Country Performer of the Week.
Morgan Eigel ’27 placed second for the Ephs, finishing with a time of 22:55 and landing her in sixth place overall. Girard emphasized the strength of the youngest members of the team. “We’re a very underclassmen-heavy team, but I think this bodes well for us, as we have a lot of unearthed potential,” she wrote in an email to the Record.
The Purple Valley Classic marked Eigel’s first home meet, and she said she enjoyed the fun energy that comes with a home meet. “It was nice to have a ton of people cheering for us, and the track team came out, which was really fun,” she said. “People’s parents were there, there was a potluck after, and we had a little senior celebration after.”
This year, the team welcomed a first-year class that was larger than last year’s, according to Fiona Picone ’26, who also highlighted the team’s promise. “Compared to last year, there’s a lot of unknowns in terms of how the team will [perform] because last year had a lot more returners, but I think this year, there’s a lot of potential,” she said.
According to Picone, the three meets that the Ephs have already competed in this season have had lower stakes, allowing the team to emphasize finding their rhythm. “I think having these meets the past few weeks to shake out the rust and figure out what I need to work on in terms of racing strategy has been really good,” she said.
Eigel echoed this sentiment, anticipating that the Ephs will use the remainder of the season to improve on technique. “As we get further into the season, we are starting to work on, ‘This is what a race should look like, this is how you need to go out so you can conserve your energy and kick here, this is how you should pack up’ — and there’s more of a strategy that we’re straightening out,” she said.
Looking ahead, Picone emphasized the importance of a strong team connection off of the course to improve performances at meets. “Feeling connected as a unit has a translational effect on how we perform in races,” she said.
The team will return to competition on Oct. 7, when the Ephs will race at the NCAA Pre-Nationals Invitational hosted by Dickinson College.
