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WESTWOOD, Mass. – The New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) has released its Athlete of the Week honorees for the week ending on October 20th. Among the selections were two Coast Guard athletes: Claire Semerod was named Women’s Cross Country Runner of the Week, and Kaela France took Women’s Volleyball Defensive Athlete of the Week.
Semerod was selected in recognition of her seventh-place finish at the Connecticut College Invitational. The Camels’ annual meet at Harkness Memorial State Park in nearby Waterford, Conn., always hosts some of the top runners and teams in NCAA Division III on both the men’s and women’s circuits. This year was no exception, as Semerod and the Bears competed against 11 teams ranked in the USTFCCCA Top 30, along with ten more teams holding regional rankings.
The junior from Colorado ran a 21:22 in the varsity blue race, the fastest-ever by a Coast Guard runner at Harkness. Semerod was also the fastest runner out of all NEWMAC competitors, with eventual winners MIT’s top runner placing tenth. Bears men’s and women’s cross country will be gearing up for their next race, the NEWMAC Cross Country Championships. The conference meet is scheduled for Saturday, November 2nd, at Wellesley College’s Nehoiden Golf Course.
As for France, the senior libero picks up her third Defensive Athlete of the Week selection this season after being tabbed for the honor in back-to-back weeks at the opening of the campaign. France averaged 6.83 digs per set over three games in a perfect week for Bears volleyball. She tallied 34 digs in a 3-1 victory over Springfield College, 30 in a five-set win at Emerson College in the first of two at the Lions’ Saturday tri-match, and 18 in the second game vs. Nichols College. Volleyball’s record sits at 15-7 (4-3 NEWMAC) with five games left in the regular season, four of which are against conference opponents.