On the six-kilometer course in Buffalo, New York, Syracuse’s women’s cross country team fell two points short of automatically qualifying for NCAA championships. Senior Paige Stoner and junior Shannon Malone punched their tickets for NCAAs with second and third place finishes, respectively.

At the start of the Northeast Regionals on the Audubon Golf Course, Stoner and Malone hurried into the main pack and stayed within one second of the lead at the halfway point.

Nearing the end of the race, Stoner was out-kicked by New Hampshire’s Elinor Purrier and finished with a time of 21:24.8. Behind her was Malone who finished third at 21:34.5. The two will make their first appearances at NCAA championships on Nov. 19 in Louisville, Kentucky, after their top-three finishes.

Sophomore Madeleine Davidson jumped 17 spots in the final three kilometers to finish 18th with a time of 22:22.4. Rachel Bonner placed 32nd (22:36.6) and Eva Scott (23:01.9) rounded out the scoring five.

Providence took first with 84 points while Syracuse placed third. SU’s 117 point performance this season was a significant improvement from its 256 point performance at last year’s regional. The Orange fell two points short of Dartmouth’s second-place finish and will hope to qualify for NCAA championships at-large as one of 13 teams placing outside of the top-two in their respective regions.