Cross Country

Junior Isabel Seidel raced to a school record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Virginia Challenge on Saturday, the latest in a string of successful outings for the Wildcats on the track.

Seidel lowered her previous personal best by 26 seconds, running a 10:33.30 and finishing 12th overall in the race. She nearly won her heat, finishing in second by a razor-thin margin of .06 seconds.

Freshman Kelly O’Brien continued to make her mark in the Northwestern history books as she ran another school record. At 2:12.29 in the 800 meters, she lowering the school record by 3 seconds. She also currently holds the top two spots on the NU 1,500-meter leaderboard.

O’Brien also competed in the 1,500 at the Virginia Challenge and led NU runners in the event with a time of 4:30.21. Junior Sara Coffey recorded a time of 4:42.11, and senior Jena Pianin came in right on her heels at 4:42.89.

O’Brien said she hopes to eventually qualify for cross country nationals with her team and to be an All-American. She said the team is focused on gaining eligibility for the NCAA national and regional meets for the remainder of the season.

Freshman Aubrey Roberts also made noise this weekend, dominating her heat of the 5,000 with a time of 16:55.33, 13 seconds faster than the next closest competitor. Roberts was the 9th fastest freshman finisher in the event.

NU will next see the track May 5 at the Payton Jordan Invitational in Palo Alto, California.

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