Sanderson, Sane Finish 1-2 for No. 3 Women's Cross Country at NCAA DIII East Regional Championships

HOPKINTON, N.H. – Seniors Kate Sanderson and Rujuta Sane finished first and second in the individual standings to lead the No. 3 MIT women's cross country team to a second place finish at the 6k 2025 NCAA Division III East Regional Championships on Saturday at the Hopkinton Fairgrounds.

Sanderson was in the lead by the 4k mark of the race and never relinquished her position, pulling away over the final 2k to win in 21:20.1. Sane was at the front of the following pack finishing in 21:26.4.

THE BASICS:

Winning Team Score: Tufts, 51 points
MIT Team Score: 2nd place, 61 points
Top Finisher: Kate Sanderson, MIT (21:20.1)

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Sanderson and Sane were the only two MIT runners in the top 15.
Sophomore Ava Hartman earned All-Region honors with a 16th place finish in 22:07.8.
Junior Jessica Meza was 18th for MIT in 22:11.3 as only Suffolk's Sofia Moukaddem separated Meza and Hartman.
Junior Megan Diulus was the final MIT scoring runner, taking 27th with a time of 22:30.0.
Junior Heather Jensen and senior Erina Hovendon finished in 41st (22:52.9) and 47th (23:06.6), respectively for the Engineers.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

Sanderson is now a four-time All-Region honoree
Sane, Hartman and Diulus all earned All-Region honors for the second consecutive season.
Meza earned the first All-Region award of her career.
This is the first time that MIT has not claimed the East Regional title since the NCAA's 10-region realignment was put into effect in 2021.
This year was the third straight season the race was competed at the Hopkinton Fairgrounds in Hopkinton, N.H.

USTFCCCA ALL-EAST REGION (Top 35 Finishers):

1. Kate Sanderson (21:20.1)
2. Rujuta Sane (21:26.4)
16. Ava Hartman (22:07.8)
18. Jessica Meza (22:11.3)
27. Megan Diulus (22:30.0)

DIII NEW ENGLAND ASSOCIATION ALL-NEW ENGLAND (Top 20 Finishers):

1. Kate Sanderson (21:20.1)
2. Rujuta Sane (21:26.4)
16. Ava Hartman (22:07.8)
18. Jessica Meza (22:11.3)

UP NEXT:

The Engineers will now wait for tomorrow's announcement of the full list of selected teams for the 2025 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships in Spartanburg, S.C.
Sanderson and Sane have already qualified, as the top seven individuals from each regional (70) total, not on a qualifying team will earn a bid. Only the regional champion earns automatic qualification.

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