GRINNELL, Iowa – With five finishers in the top 12, including the individual champ, Grinnell College's women's cross country team captured its first Midwest Conference title since 2019 Saturday afternoon on its home course.
The Pioneers tallied 37 points, easily beating runner-up Lawrence University by 13 as
Sarah Burnell won Coach of the Year honors while getting her first league title while guiding the team.
Keely Miyamoto '26 became Grinnell's first individual champ since Burnell did so in 2013, cruising the 6-kilometer Grinnell College Golf Course route in 22 minutes, 46.88 seconds. That time, which ranks 11
th in program history, was nearly 9 seconds better than the runner-up from Ripon College.
Morgan Karow '26 added a third-place finish in 23:03.86, which ranks 17
th in program history. The Pioneers completed their scoring with a nice pack that finished between 10
th and 12
th place. That group included
Talia Harrison '26,
Hannah Roark '26 and
Crystal Kaczmarczyk '25, who ran 24:05.09, 24:12.05 and 24:12.10, respectively.
Kaczmarczyk's time ranks 49
th in program history, while Harrison and Roark are already on the list. Miyamoto, Roark, Harrison and Kaczmarczyk have all earned All-MWC recognition twice in their careers.
Diana Barba '26 placed 21
st for Grinnell in 24:55.69 and
Allison Rabbani '25 took 22
nd in 24:58.71.
Grinnell, which now has league-bests of 21 MWC team titles and 12 individual champs, will compete in the Luther College Saga Cup this Friday.
Results
