WESTFIELD, Mass. –     Westfield State senior Amy O'Sullivan (Greenfield, Mass.) has qualified for the 2021 NCAA Division III Championship meet, as she placed eighth overall individually at the NCAA Mideast regional today at Harkness Park in Waterford, Conn.

The top seven runners not on a qualifying team received bids to the national championship race, and O'Sullivan will not have to sweat out the team selections as Williams College won the regional and placed one runner (meet winner Geena Girard) ahead of O'Sullivan, slotting her into the national meet.

O'Sullivan ran 22:23.6 on the 6,000 meter course, 53.6 seconds off of Girard's winning time.

The NCAA championship meet is scheduled for next Saturday, November 20 at E.P. Tom Sawyer Park in Louisville, Ky., a course O'Sullivan ran in competition earlier this season.

The Owls placed 16^th among the 24 scoring teams at the meet with 457 points, just 31 points back of Plattsburgh (NY) State, which was the highest-scoring public college at the meet in 15^th place.

This is the first time the Owls have competed in the new Mideast Regional, as the NCAA redrew the regions and the selection process prior to the pandemic.

First year Kerin Johnson was next for the Owls in 99^th place in 25:12.5, followed by Mia McDonald (114^th, 25:37.8), Kayla Whitcomb, (115^th, 25:38.5)  Grace Poplawski (131^st, 26:05.9), Molly Kennedy (133, 26:13.5), and Sarah Tormey (141^st, 26:34.5).

A total of 172 athletes competed at the meet.