Success is nothing new for the Bison women’s cross country team. The squad collected its ninth Patriot League Championship title on Oct. 31, thanks largely to impressive results from Kate Scott ’17. Three Orange and Blue runners secured spots on the first team All-Patriot League roster, and Scott finished the  6k race in second place in 21:23, followed closely by her teammates Christine Bendzinski ’18 and Sarah Chandler ’17. The collective team performance was the Orange and Blue’s most dominant win in the past seven years, as the Bison were awarded six of the 14 All-Patriot League awards at Colgate’s Harry H. Lang Cross Country Course.

“As a team I believe we were more successful this year because we used our momentum from our improvement last year to be more motivated and unified than ever. A lot of our team success, and my personal improvement throughout the last three years builds off of the great team culture we have,” Scott said. 

The first-team All-Patriot League selection was Scott’s first of her career after she secured a spot on the second-team All-Patriot league roster last season as a sophomore. She has been a crucial member of the cross country team since her freshman campaign in the 2013-2014 season, when she first made her mark as a standout rookie. She placed 20th overall and 2nd of the Orange and Blue at the Patriot League Championship in her first year of competition, completing her 6K race in 22:54.58. As a sophomore, Scott ran in six races and earned Second Team All-Patriot League honors after finishing in 12th place at the conference meet.

Scott has had tremendous success in many events over the last two years, as she currently ranks second in program history in both the 10,000 meter run and the outdoor 5,000 meter run. In addition, she ranks third in the indoor 5,000 meter run and eighth in the indoor 3,000 run. While these scores all boast Scott’s personal records, her performance this past weekend foreshadows even more impressive success in her future races.

Despite her individual recognition, Scott notes the importance of a strong team atmosphere.

“When we have this type of family atmosphere, we are not just running for ourselves, but we are running for everyone on our team,” Scott said. 

Scott will turn her attention and focus to the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships at Princeton on Nov. 13, where she and the other top six Bison runners hope to place high.  

“My goal, and the goal of two of my teammates (Bendzinski and Chandler), is to be All-Region at the NCAA regional meet, which would be a top 25 performance in the region. I am also hoping to set a new personal best at this meet,” Scott said.

Personal Records (through 2014-15 season)
Indoor
– 3,000 meter run (9:55.75)
– 5,000 meter run (17:11.05)
Outdoor
– 1,500 meter run (4:41.35)
– 5,000 meter run (16:52.80)
– 10,000 meter run (35:18.94)