Northwestern’s Ava Earl (205) nears the finish line at the Big Ten Conference Championships. Photo by Walt Middleton/Northwestern Athletics
Two weeks after winning her first collegiate cross country race, Girdwood’s Ava Earl soared to new heights at the Big Ten Championships.
The Northwestern senior slashed 32 seconds from her personal best to place 14th, clocking 19 minutes, 42 seconds — a scintillating pace of 5:17 per mile — over six kilometers, while Anchorage’s Santiago Prosser and Tristian Merchant celebrated team victories.
Earl, who has a storied résumé and doubles as a singer-songwriter, has continued to flourish both on and off the cross country course.
After the dissolution of the Pac-12 Conference, the Big Ten Conference expanded from 14 teams to 18 teams.
Up against stacked competition, Earl rose to the occasion, leading all five members of the Wildcats’ scoring squad to personal bests.
Earl’s time of 19:42 is one of the quickest by an Alaskan woman over six kilometers. Soldotna’s Allie Ostrander holds the all-time state mark of 19:09 from 2018.
The senior also earned All-Big Ten honors for the first time, obliterating her previous conference placements of 74th (2023) and 43rd (2022), while the ‘Cats finished seventh.
Merchant placed third at the CUSA Conference Championships, leading Liberty to sweep the conference titles for the first time since 2012.
Liberty’s Tristian Merchant competes at the CUSA Conference Championships. Photo by Liberty XC/TF
Competing in his first conference cross country race since 2021, the sophomore showed no signs of rust, covering the eight-kilometer course in 24 minutes flat.
The Flames accumulated 46 points to edge defending champion Middle Tennessee by a mere two points.
Merchant earned first-team All-CUSA honors for his efforts.
In the Big Sky Conference, Prosser helped the Lumberjacks sweep the team titles after contributing to Northern Arizona’s fourth-straight conference title on the men’s side.
The senior placed fifth in 23:29 in his cross country conference debut, finishing as the Lumberjacks’ third scorer and earning All-Conference honors.
NAU placed all five scorers in the top 9 to handily win the conference title, amassing just 25 points.
Also celebrating a team victory was Juneau’s Sadie Tuckwood. The Gonzaga senior placed 41st at the WCC Championships, covering the six-kilometer course in 21:52.
The Bulldogs scored 35 points, defeating runner-up Portland by 14 points.
Five athletes contributed to top-3 team showings, while a trio of runners partook in the loaded RMAC Championships.
Eagle River’s Emily Walsh competed in her first Great Midwest Conference Championships in three years. The Cedarville senior placed 3rd in 21:40, as her team narrowly placed runner-up behind Walsh University.
Cedarville’s Emily Walsh competing at the All Ohio Intercollegiate XC Classic. Photo by Cedarville Cross Country
Anchorage’s Lucy Young placed 39th in 22:32 at the CAA Conference Championships, helping William & Mary finish runner-up behind Northeastern.
North Pole’s Madeline Castillo placed 55th in her ASUN Conference Championships debut, helping North Florida place runner-up behind Lipscomb. The North Florida freshman clocked 19 minutes flat for five kilometers.
Anchorage’s Elizabeth Page made her Centennial Conference Championships debut. The Swarthmore freshman placed 10th in 22:39, helping her team place third.
Anchorage’s Berit Meyers made her conference debut at the Liberty League Championships. The St. Lawrence freshman placed 72nd in 26:17, as a part of the third-place team.
Anchorage’s Kaleb Beloy placed 31st at the RMAC Championships. The CSU-Pueblo senior clocked 25:15, while Fort Lewis teammates, Sitka’s Skyler McIntyre and Anchorage’s Brady Burrough, placed 58th (26:08) and 62nd (26:10) respectively. The ThunderWolves placed fifth, while the Skyhawks finished close behind in sixth.
CSU-Pueblo’s Kaleb Beloy competes at the RMAC Championships. Photo by CSU-Pueblo XC/TF
Other notable conference performances:
- Juneau’s Anna Iverson placed 21st at the Northwest Conference Championships. The Pacific Lutheran senior clocked 23:09 for 6K.
- Eagle River’s Claire Nelson placed 34th at the Mountain West Championships. The senior was the top finisher for Nevada in 22:03 for 6K.
- Homer’s Seamus McDonough placed 37th at the NESCAC Championships. The Bowdoin sophomore clocked 25:40 for 8K as his team’s second scorer.
- North Pole’s Lia Castillo placed 50th at the American Athletic Championships. The UAB sophomore finished in 22:48 for 6K as her team’s second scorer.
- Eagle River’s Breanna Day placed 64th at the Missouri Valley Championships. The Murray State senior clocked 22:30 for 6K as her team’s third scorer.
- Anchorage’s Ryann Dorris placed 98th at the WCC Championships. The Loyola Marymount senior clocked 25:14 for 6K.
