KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The Western Michigan cross country team heads to East Lansing on Friday morning for the 2026 NCAA Great Lakes Regional Championship. The 6K race is scheduled to begin at 10 am.
LAST TIME OUT
The Broncos are coming off of a fifth-place finish at the 2026 MAC Championships two weeks ago at the Prairies Golf Course in Kalamazoo. It was the highest finish at the conference championship for Western Michigan since 2022.
Ava Kurczewski paced the Brown and Gold with a new 6K PR time of 20:29.4 to place 10th and earn a spot on the All-MAC Second Team. The time also moved the junior up to fourth on WMU's all-time list.
Lillian Zelasko was not too far behind Kurczewski, placing 15th with a season-best time of 20:40.7.
Rebekah Asselin (20:58.1) and
Kaelin Hughes (21:26.4) clocked PRs, placing 24th and 37th, respectively.
Madison Zarembski rounded out WMU's scoring lineup with a 55th-place finish.
LAST YEAR'S EVENT
Western Michigan placed 15th at the 2025 Great Lakes Regional Championship down in Evansville, Ind. It marked the team's best finish at the event since placing 13th in 2022.
Lily Overton paced the Broncos with a 54th-place finish.
Ava Kurczewski finished 96th with what was then a PR time of 21:51.34.
REGIONAL RANKINGS
Western Michigan has been a top-10 team in the USTFCCCA Great Lakes Region poll for every week of the 2026 season. The Broncos started the campaign with a preseason ranking of ninth, the highest preseason ranking in program history, and have held firm in the top-10 throughout the year. Following their fifth-place finish at the 2026 MAC Championship, the Brown and Gold enter the Great Lakes Regional meet once again ranked ninth in the regional poll.
Four other 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 Bowling Green (#6), Akron (#7) and Ohio (#11).
WHO'S COMPETING? (Denotes 6K PR)
Rebekah Asselin (20:58.1)
Kaelin Hughes (21:26.4)
Ava Kurczewski (20:29.4)
Larissa McGrath (22:05.1)
Lily Overton (20:45.4)
Madison Zarembski (21:43.2)
Lillian Zelasko (20:06.7)
