WINGATE, N.C. – The Lincoln Memorial University women's cross country team wrapped up its 2017 season Saturday with a tenth-place finish at the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional meet on Saturday on the campus of Wingate University. The 6k meet consisted of 23 teams and 159 individual runners representing either the South Atlantic Conference, Conference Carolinas or Peach Belt Conference.
 
The Lady Railsplitters finished with 345 points and an average time of 25:29.60. It is the second-highest regional finish in program history behind the 2014 team that was ninth.
 
"I am very happy for this group of ladies to come away with a top-ten performance," LMU head women's cross country coach Jeremy Donahue said. "We talked about going out competing and trusting their instincts to see if we couldn't pull off the top-ten finish, and they executed perfectly."
 
Queens, the top-ranked team in the region and SAC champion, placed four runners in the top 25 to win the event with 76 points and punch a ticket to the National Championship meet, which is being hosted in Evansville, Indiana on November 18. Fellow South Atlantic Conference program Anderson finished second and Conference Carolinas champion Mount Olive third to also clinch bids.
 
A pair of Lady Railsplitters earned All-Region honors in senior Whitney Elliott and freshman Tabea Kandlbauer. Elliott turned in a 21^st-place finish with a time of 23:20.29, while Kandlbauer placed just two spots behind at 23:29.5.
 
"Whitney and Tabea finishing in the top 25 for two All-region spots is something we haven't done in a long time," Donahue said.
 
Layney Vincent also finished in the top half of the race with a 60^th-place 24:53.7.
 
Aside from those three, no other LMU runners finished inside the top 100. Marykate Longmire took 120^th place at 27:47.8, while Chloe Harp was the team's final placer just one spot behind at 27:56.7. Sommer El-Khatib ended the race in 135^th place to round out the Lady Railsplitters' day.
 
Mount Olive's Leah Hanle won the race at 21:15.5. Hannah Wolkenhauer of Queens finished 14.1 seconds behind in second. Coker's Darroneshia Lott was third at 21:29.5.
 
Women's 6k results

10. Lincoln Memorial - 345 points
21. Whitney Elliott - 23:20.3
23. Tabea Kandlbauer - 23:29.5
60. Layney Vincent - 24:53.7
120. Marykate Longmire - 27:47.8
121. Chloe Harp - 27:56.7
135. Sommer El-Khatib - 29:38.8