Doucet 12th At U SPORTS Championships

(LONDON, ON) Emily Doucet ran to a 12^th place finish in the women's eight-kilometre race at the 2023 U SPORTS Cross Country Championships, in London, on Sunday.

Doucet covered the course in a time of 29:35.1, leading UNB, the silver medalists at the Atlantic University Sport Championships, to an 8^th place finish in the team standings.

"Our group came in with a chip on their shoulder, feeling under-ranked nationally," said Chris Belof, head coach of the REDS' cross country and track & field teams. "All stepped up in a big way and delivered on the national stage. It was a great team result and a full team effort."

"I'm really happy about how I finished," said Doucet, the AUS women's champion. "The last K was really hard. I kept hearing 14 and 15, and I thought, okay, I'm there. I had a goal of being in the top 15, so I decided to push it a little bit and then everything worked out."

Sierra Rodrigues was the next RED across the finish line, in 29^th place. Georgia Bernhard was 48^th, Olivia Baggley was 60^th, Laura Dickinson was 86^th, and Morgan Tiede was 107^th in the field of 147.

Runners from UBC, Laval, and the host Western Mustangs finished first and second and third in the women's race and the UBC Thunderbirds captured the women's team title.

"It's amazing," said Doucet, named a 2^nd Team All-Canadian. "Last year we were 13^th and this year we have two girls in the top 30 and a couple in the top 50 as well, which is a lot better than last year where we had only one runner in the top 50, it's a big step for the women's program and is putting UNB on the map."

"It was a special day for the program and a step towards our ultimate objective of being a national contender," said Belof. "It's been a lot of fun to see this group of men and women grow over the years. And I can't say enough about all of the support from UNB's Athletics Department, the New Brunswick athletics community, and our alumni and our supporters. There is a lot of buzz around our teams right now, and we're very grateful for all the support."

STORY: Andy Campbell/UNB Athletics

PHOTOS: Western Athletics/for U SPORTS