BETHPAGE, N.Y. – The Monmouth women's cross country team delivered a historic performance at the 2026 CAA Cross Country Championships on Friday, finishing second overall at Bethpage State Park for its best conference finish since winning the Northeast Conference title in 2000 and best CAA Championship result since joining the conference in 2022.
The Monmouth men placed seventh in the 8K championship race.
"I couldn't be more proud of the way our women competed today at the CAA Championships," said Monmouth Head Coach Damon Godfrey. "Finishing second overall, our highest conference championship finish in 26 years, is a tremendous accomplishment and a major step forward for our program after placing fourth just a year ago. This group has worked incredibly hard and today was a reflection of that commitment, and I couldn't be happier for them."
The Hawks' women totaled 78 points, finishing just four points ahead of third-place William & Mary and 10 points clear of fourth-place Northeastern. Elon won the team championship with 33 points. Monmouth's five scorers combined for an average 6K time of 21:19.68.
Junior Emily Simko, who finished sixth overall at the 2024 edition of the event, led Monmouth's historic effort with a third-place individual finish, completing the 6K course in 20:43.9. Simko finished just over seven seconds behind individual champion Hannah Weber of Elon. The third place finish was Monmouth's highest conference individual placing since Sammi Ragenklint earned silver at the MAAC Championships in 2021.
Fellow junior Kristen Sarnicola crossed immediately behind Simko, placing fourth overall in 20:50.9. Sophomore Payton Campbell gave the Hawks three runners inside the top eight, finishing eighth with a time of 21:01.3. Monmouth was the only team other than champion Elon to place three runners among the first eight finishers.
Sophomore Elaina Rainwater continued the Hawks' strong scoring effort, taking 25th overall in 21:45.4, before junior Olivia Schweitzer completed the scoring five with a 40th-place finish in 22:16.9.
Monmouth also received strong depth behind its scoring group. Aleah Lazar finished 45th in 22:20.0, with Leah Rutledge close behind in 48th at 22:21.8. Avery Errico (22:53.2), Lana Hurwitz (23:19.2), Casey Collins (23:26.8), Erin Vincent (23:30.6) and Anna Hoffman (24:12.4) also represented the Hawks.
"On the men's side, we battled hard to finish seventh despite competing without several of our top runners," Godfrey continued. "Freshmen Mikey McGinnity and Jack Ockenden were our top two finishers, which speaks volumes about the bright future ahead for our men's program. I'm proud of the way our guys competed through adversity and continued to fight for one another."
McGinnity paced Monmouth for the third consecutive meet, finishing 29th overall in the 8K with a time of 25:22.2. Ockenden followed with a 44th-place showing in 25:44.1.
Senior Tomas Barry was the Hawks' third scorer, crossing the line in 26:20.4, while freshman Michael Black finished in 26:36.1. Junior Conor Clifford completed Monmouth's scoring five in 26:41.0. The Hawks totaled 210 points and averaged 26:08.76 across their five scorers to finish seventh overall.
Drew Bowker (26:43.4) and James Giordano (26:46.8) followed closely as Monmouth's sixth and seventh finishers, while Aaron Guensch crossed in 27:25.9.
William & Mary captured the men's team championship with 34 points, edging Stony Brook's 39. Hofstra finished third with 69 points.
Godfrey finished, "We have made tremendous strides as a program, and today was another important step in the right direction. We are excited to carry this momentum into the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships in two weeks and finish the season strong. Go Hawks!"
The Hawks' postseason will continue on Nov. 13 in Bethlehem, PA., for the NCAA Mid Atlantic Regionals.
