Bates College senior Jillian Richardson runs the wet course at the NCAA Division III East Region Cross Country Championship on Saturday in Brunswick. Richardson, an Edward Little graduate, took first in the race, making her the Bobcats first region champion since 1992. Tom Leonard photo
Edward Little High School graduate Jillian Richardson is the first Bates College runner in 30 years to win a regional championship.
The senior from Auburn won the NCAA Division III East Region Cross Country Championship on Saturday in Brunswick, finishing the 6-kilometer course in 21 minutes, 41.1 seconds.
The last Bobcats runner to win a region title was Kristy Gould in 1992.
All seven Bates runners in the women’s race finished in the top 35, thereby earning all-region honors. Joining Richardson on the all-region team are Frieda Kickliter, Elizabeth Holcombe, Phoebe Pohl, Ilana Zeilinger, Jordan Wilson and Jen Coseno.
Richardson paced the Bobcats to a second-place finish at the East Region championship. On Sunday, the Bates women received an at-large invitation to the NCAA Division III championships on Saturday in East Lansing, Michigan.
Richardson earned All-America honors at last year’s NCAA championships by placing 33rd.
The Bobcats will be making their fourth straight NCAA championship appearance, and eighth overall.
The Bates men also received an invite to nationals, the fifth time the school’s men’s and women’s teams have both received at-large bids.
The Bobcats’ men’s team also finished second at the East Region championships on Saturday in Brunswick. Six runners earned all-region honors with top-35 finishes: Ryan Smith, Ned Farrington, Eli Boesch Dining, Victor Kering, Krishna Kakani and Sam Kartsonis.
The NCAA invite is the 11th for the Bates men’s cross country program.
FOOTBALL
BOSSELAIT BREAKS RECORDS: Bates College sophomore quarterback Colton Bosselait set a pair of school record during the Bobcats’ season-ending 19-14 win over Hamilton on Saturday.
Bosselait’s three touchdown passes Saturday gave him 17 on the season. He also ran for four scores, giving him a hand in 21 TDs, which surpasses the previous Bates record of 19 by Chuck Laurie (17 passing, two rushing) in 1978. Bosselait’s 17 touchdown passes are tied for the most in a season in program history with Laurie and Jim Murphy.
He also finishes the season with 1,817 passing yards, which breaks the record set by Brendan Costa (1,680 yards) last year.
Bosselait, who is from Westminster, Massachusetts, also set a program record in last year’s win over Hamilton — the first start of his college career — by throwing for 372 yards, the most in a game in Bates history.
The Bobcats finish their first season under head coach Matt Coyne with a 3-6 record. They have won three games in consecutive seasons for the first time since winning at least three games in four straight seasons from 2011-14.
Bates also claimed a three-way split of the CBB football rivalry thanks to Bowdoin’s win over Colby on Saturday. The Bobcats defeated Bowdoin earlier this season but fell to Colby, leaving all three teams with 1-1 records against the other two.
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