SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Norwich University women's cross country team closed the regular season with another encouraging performance on Saturday morning, placing fifth overall in a deep 18-team field at the Golden Bear Invitational, hosted by Western New England University.
Competing over six kilometers in their final tune-up before the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Championships, the Cadets totaled 136 points and placed all five scorers among the top 40 overall. Norwich finished just nine points behind host Western New England University for fourth while continuing to display the pack running that has steadily developed throughout the fall.
Freshman Ava Dillon (Erie, Colo.) once again led the way for the maroon and gold, crossing 11th overall in 24:14.00.
The performance marked Dillon's fifth consecutive meet as Norwich's top finisher, capping a regular season in which the rookie consistently established herself at the front of the Cadet lineup. Her 11th-place showing also represented another strong result as Norwich prepares to return to the Morris Trail for the conference championship.
Sophomore Kaitlyn Moore (Ballston Lake, N.Y.) turned in one of her strongest finishes of the fall, crossing second for Norwich and 26th overall in 25:00.78.
Freshman Anna Barlow (Kingston, N.H.) followed close behind in 29th at 25:13.88, giving Norwich three runners inside the top 30.
Sophomore Ally Teitsch (Malta, N.Y.) came through fourth for the Cadets and 33rd overall in 25:33.08, while junior Delaney Whitmarsh (North Yarmouth, Maine) completed Norwich's scoring five in 37th with a time of 25:41.15.
Just 40.37 seconds separated Moore through Whitmarsh across Norwich's second through fifth scoring positions, giving the Cadets another compact pack behind Dillon.
Freshman Haley Mitchell (APO, Armed Forces Pacific) followed in 44th overall at 26:00.74, while sophomore Heidi Edwards rounded out Norwich's top seven in 51st with a 26:25.77 performance.
"The women's and men's teams competed well today both placing fifth overall out of twenty-some teams," said Head Coach Michael McGrane. "Today was a final tune-up race before the GNAC XC Championships in just two weeks. The teams have developed well with a pair of consistent top performers by Ava and Leo followed by good depth and pack running between our 2nd through 7th runners. We're looking better each week and looking forward to the chance to place high at the GNAC's."
Plymouth State University captured the team championship with 26 points, followed by GNAC foe Emmanuel College (Mass.) with 99. UMass Boston took third with 123, while host Western New England finished fourth with 127. Norwich followed just nine points behind the Golden Bears in fifth, placing fifth out of 18 scoring teams with 136 points.
The Cadets' top-five finish in the 18-team field provided another strong benchmark entering the championship portion of the schedule, with all five Norwich scorers finishing among the top 40.
WOMEN'S LEADERS:
Norwich will now turn its full attention toward the 2026 GNAC Championships, hosted by Colby-Sawyer College at the Morris Trail on Sunday, Nov. 1. The women's six-kilometer championship race is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.
