About The Team 

The men’s and women's cross country programs continue to grow under the direction of sixth-year head coach Amy Lane. Coach Lane, whose training philosophy combines traditional runs with innovative cross-training techniques, is focused on recruiting talented runners from throughout the New England and Northeast regions.

Both teams have combined to produce nine All-Conference runners, 10 Academic All-Americans, and one Conference Runner of the Year. The women's team has been recognized as a Division III Academic All-American team in four of the last nine years. They also won consecutive Conference Championships in 2000 and 2001, and narrowly missed claiming their third consecutive championship in 2002.

The Blazers competed in seven invitationals in 2009 and hosted the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Championship meet at Chicopee Memorial State Park in addition to their traditional home race. The site provides soft surfaced trails for optimized training, and also serves as the home practice and competition site for the two teams throughout the season.

On the women’s side, junior runner Alycia Dabrowski (Chicopee, Mass.) was named Second-Team All-NECC after placing sixth overall at the conference championship meet. Dabrowski clocked a personal best 22:29 at the race, and finished as the Blazers’ top runner in five of seven meets during the 2009 season. She finished eighth overall at the Daniel Webster College Invitational (Sept. 18), finished 24/83 at the Blazers Invitational (Sept. 26), and placed 43/136 at the WNEC Invitational (Oct. 17). Dabrowski also garnered an NECC Runner of the Week award.

  Senior Amanda Koch (Williston, V.T.) crossed the tape first for Elms in the season opener at Smith (28:16 in the 5-kilometer race), and the season-ending Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships, finishing the 5-kilometer course in a time of 27:50.

The cross country schedule includes annual meets against many of the best Division II and III teams in New England and New York. The Blazers conclude each season with three championships - the NECC Championship, the ECAC Division III Championship, and the NCAA Division III New England Qualifier.