Complete Results
NORTHFIELD, Minn. (csssaints.com) – St. Scholastica's
Chelsea Johnson (North Branch, Minn./Chisago Lakes HS) finished third overall at Saturday's NCAA Division III Central Region Meet, hosted by St. Olaf College, to qualify for the NCAA Division III National Championships next week.
The Saints as a team had their second-highest finish as a team in program history at a NCAA Division III region meet. The highest was second during the 1982 season.
The team winner of the region meet was Wartburg College (Iowa) with 72 points. The host, St. Olaf, was second with 95 points. Both of those teams advance to the NCAA Division III championships by placing in the top two. The Saints finished with 306 points in the 10th spot.
Johnson placed third overall with a program record time of 21:43. Linda Keller of the University of Minnesota Morris won the meet for the second consecutive year giving the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) two of the top three runners in the region.
Johnson becomes the first Saint to qualify for nationals since Katelyn Meger did it in 2009. Johnson also earns all-region accolades for placing in the top 35.
Freshman
Andrea Mogren (Forest Lake, Minn./Forest Lake HS) was the second CSS runner to cross the finish line, 56th overall in a time of 24:16. Another freshman,
Liz Braml (Turtle Lake, Wis./Turtle Lake HS), was next placing 75th overall with a time of 24:34.
A third freshman was the fourth St. Scholastica runner to score in
Kyla Krause (Crystal, Minn./Robbinsdale Cooper HS), 10 spots behind Braml with a time of 24:50. The last runner to score for the Saints was senior
Kristen Gronbeck (Battle Lake, Minn./Battle Lake HS), in her final race, placing 87th with a time of 24:51.
The NCAA Division III championships will be held in Terre Haute, Ind. next Saturday at the LaVern Gibson Course. Johnson will compete in the women's race at noon eastern time. For the rest of the Saints, their seasons come to an end.
For future news on the St. Scholastica women's cross country team, keep checking csssaints.com.
