Oct. 25, 2007

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Following a perfect 4-0 record during dual-meet action in the regular season, the Navy women's cross country team will begin its postseason at the Patriot League Championship on Saturday at 12 noon at Lafayette's Metzgar Fields.

In addition to the dual meets, the Midshipmen recorded third-place scores at the Covered Bridge Open on August 31 and in the Salty Seadog Invitational on Sept. 15. The Mids also posted a convincing 23-38 victory over Army in West Point two weeks ago to capture the N-Star.

After having not competed on Lafayette's home course in the program's first-24 years, Navy will make its second visit to Metzgar Fields within the last-two weeks. The Midshipmen raced their freshmen and sophomores in placing eighth out of 11 schools at the Lafayette Invitational on Oct. 13, one day after their victory over Army.

With a full squad at its disposal, Navy did not finish behind any Patriot League school during the fall. In addition to the dual-meet victory over Army in the only meeting between the two teams on the year, the Midshipmen topped American by two spots in the Salty Seadog Invitational. Two weeks later at the Paul Short Invitational, Navy topped the league field of Bucknell, Colgate, Lafayette and Lehigh.

Coming into the season, Navy was picked second in the Patriot League Preseason Poll, projected to finish only behind two-time defending league champion Bucknell. The Midshipmen enter this Saturday's race ranked by the U.S. Track & Field/Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) as the 11th-best team in the Mid-Atlantic Region, only two spots behind Bucknell.

The Midshipmen will also be searching for their first Patriot League title since joining the league in 2003. Navy has finished second at the league championship in two of the last-three seasons (2004 and '06).

Expected to lead the pack of Navy runners across the finish line for the fourth time this season is Arwyn Becker (Sr./Vail, Colo.). Becker has scored in all five of her races in the fall, including three overall top-10 efforts. In the Salty Seadog Invitational on Sept. 15, she produced the third-fastest Navy time in USNA Cross Country Course history, a 22:47 clocking.

Team captain Kyleigh Millhouse (Sr./Boiling Springs, Pa.) has provided a steady scoring influence for the Mids in 2007. The 2004 Patriot League Rookie of the Year has landed among Navy's scoring five in all five races, three of which she placed among the top-20 competitors.

Erica Ziel (So./Saginaw, Mich.) has also scored in all five meets this season, including Navy's top performance in the season-opening Covered Bridge Open. Amy Watson (Hampstead, Md.) emerged with a first-place performance in the Star Meet against Army two weeks ago, while Maureen Dooley (Jr./Durham, Conn.) and Katie Rentz (Fr./San Diego, Calif.) have been in the mix for scoring or serving as a displacing runner in every race this year.

Following this weekend's action, Navy will head to the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Region Championship on Saturday, Nov. 10, in Bethlehem, Pa. The top-two teams in that meet earn a spot in the NCAA Championship in Terre Haute, Ind., on Monday, Nov. 19.