KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The Western Michigan cross country team hosts the 2026 Mid-American Conference Championships on Friday at the Prairies Golf Course. The meet is scheduled to begin at 11 am.
LAST TIME OUT
Lillian Zelasko paced Western Michigan two weeks ago at the Pre-National Invitational hosted by Indiana State, helping the Brown and Gold finish 31st in a loaded field which included seven of the nation's top-30 teams. Zelasko claimed 114th place with a time of 21:02.9.
Ava Kurczewski and
Rebekah Asselin were the next two Broncos to cross the line, each notching 6K PRs to move into WMU's all-time, top-10 list. Kurczewski clocked a time of 21:07.7, while Asselin finished in 21:11.9. Rounding out the scoring lineup for Western Michigan were
Lily Overton (21:42.6) and
Kaelin Hughes (21:47.2).
LAST YEAR'S EVENT
Western Michigan is coming off of a sixth-place finish at the 2025 MAC Championships in Buffalo, N.Y.
Lily Overton placed 19th to lead the Broncos with a time of 21:22.5.
Kaelin Hughes was one of the fastest freshmen in last year's race, finishing fifth among freshmen with a time of 21:42.4. Toledo took home the 2025 team title to capture its fifth straight team championship. WMU is hosting the MAC Cross Country Championships for the first time since 2010.
MOVING BACK UP
Following its performance in the Pre-National Invitational, Western Michigan moved back up a spot in the final USTFCCCA Great Lakes Region poll of the regular season. The Broncos started the season with a preseason ranking of ninth, the highest preseason ranking in program history, and have held firm in the top-10 throughout the campaign.
Six Mid-American Conference squads joined the Broncos in the latest Great Lakes Region poll, with Toledo leading the way at No. 2. Also in the poll from the MAC were Akron (#6), Bowling Green (#7), Ohio (#11) and Miami (#14).
WHO'S COMPETING? (Denotes 6K PR)
Rebekah Asselin (21:11.9)
Madison Clor (22:28.7)
Shannon Gillahan (23:10.3)
Kaelin Hughes (21:30.4)
Ava Kurczewski (21:07.7)
Larissa McGrath (22:05.1)
Emma Steele (22:09.4)
Madison Zarembski (21:43.2)
Lillian Zelasko (20:06.7)
