By: Evan O'Kelly, Associate Commissioner for Communications

PORTLAND, Ore. – Emerging as the favorites to sweep both the women’s and men’s cross country titles in 2025, Western Washington was selected atop the Great Northwest Athletic Conference preseason coaches polls announced on Monday.
 
The Vikings have won each of the last three GNAC cross country team titles on both the women’s and men’s sides. It was a clearcut poll on the women’s side, with WWU receiving all 10 first-place votes to reach the maximum possible point total with 100. Northwest Nazarene’s men received a pair of first-place votes and 92 total points, but WWU’s men received the other eight first-place votes and topped that poll with 98 points.
 
WWU will look to match Alaska Anchorage as the only school in GNAC history to win four consecutive team titles across both genders in the same four seasons. UAA achieved that feat when both its women and men swept each GNAC team title from 2010-13.
 
Amend Park in Billings, Mont., will play host to the 2025 GNAC Cross Country Championships, which are scheduled for Oct. 25. It will be the second time the conference meet will take place in the Magic City, after MSUB served as the host in the fall of 2019.
 

2025 GNAC Women’s Cross Country Preseason Coaches Poll
Rank	Team (1st Place Votes	Points	2024 GNAC Championships Finish (Score)
1	Western Washington (10)	100	1st (48)
2	Alaska Anchorage	83	T3rd (80)
3	Simon Fraser	73	5th (95)
4	Alaska	69	2nd (74)
5	Seattle Pacific	61	T3rd (80)
6	Western Oregon	55	6th (162)
7	Central Washington	43	7th (181)
8	Northwest Nazarene	31	8th (208)
9	Montana State Billings	19	9th (279)
10	Saint Martin's	18	10th (314)
Points awarded on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.

   

2025 GNAC Men’s Cross Country Preseason Coaches Poll
Rank	Team (1st Place Votes	Points	2024 GNAC Championships Finish (Score)
1	Western Washington (8)	98	1st (32)
2	Northwest Nazarene (2)	92	2nd (73)
3	Alaska Anchorage	73	3rd (86)
4	Western Oregon	72	T4th (95)
5	Central Washington	57	T4th (95)
6	Simon Fraser	56	6th (153)
7	Alaska	39	7th (196)
8	Seattle Pacific	32	8th (248)
9	Saint Martin's	21	9th (257)
10	Montana State Billings	10	DNC
Points awarded on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.

   

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GNAC Women’s Cross Country Season Outlook
Back for the Viking women are Ella Edens, Laura Halsell, Emmy Kroontje, Danielle McLain, Alanna Parker and Alexis Parker, who each have GNAC Championships experience to their names. The 2023 GNAC Freshman of the Year, Edens is the top-finishing returner earning all-conference with a 10th-place finish (21:59.9 minutes) a season ago. McLain finished 11th (22:06.6 minutes) as a true freshman in 2024, and Halsell was 13th (22:17.6) amid a group of seven Vikings who all finished in the top-14 to give them the team title. Alanna Parker competed in both the 2022 and 2023 GNAC Championships, while Kroontje was a member of the trophy-winning squad in 2023 and Alexis Parker competed on the 2022 championship squad as a freshman. Another name to watch on the WWU roster is junior Jill Philbin, who has yet to compete in a GNAC cross country championship but was the outdoor gold medalist in the 1,500 meters last May. The Vikings ran away with the team title last fall, totaling 48 points to hold off second-place Alaska by 26 points. The Vikings’ biggest losses were all-conference performers Ashley Reeck (6th place, 21:49.8 minutes) and Sophie Wright (9th place, 21:58.8 minutes), Ila Davis (12th place, 22:09.5 minutes) and Emma Smith (14th place, 22:18.3 minutes).
 
An Alaska Anchorage unit that placed third at last year’s GNAC Championships was projected second in the preseason poll, as the Seawolves garnered 83 points. Reigning GNAC Freshman of the Year Alexandra Otto could be among the favorites to contend for the individual title this fall, after placing eighth (21:57.5 minutes) in her debut season. The Seawolves’ depth is bolstered by the return of Avery Williamson (15th place, 22:20.1 minutes), GNAC Newcomer of the Year Ryann Smith (28th place, 22:50.2 minutes), Makendra McCarty (30th place, 23:02.8 minutes), Lilli Lindner (T31st place, 23:03.7 minutes) and Delaney Draeger (51st place, 23:52.8 minutes).
 
Polling right behind the Seawolves with 73 points, Simon Fraser was yet again projected for an upper-third finish at the conference meet. The Red Leafs took fifth place as a team last fall with a score of 95, and welcome back some of their top performers. Rachael Watkins, a junior in 2024, finished seventh (21:56.1 minutes) at last year’s GNAC Championships on her way to all-conference honors. As freshmen Dayna Thompson was 20th (22:30.9 minutes) and Veronica Dee was 24th (22:39.3 minutes), and then-sophomore Selin Tasdemir also notched an upper-half finish in 39th place (23:29.3 minutes).
 
A remarkable stretch of individual dominance by the Alaska Nanook women came to a close last year, with the departure of All-Americans Kendall Kramer and Rose Fordham. Kramer was a three-time GNAC individual champion and finished as the national runner-up in 2024, while Fordham captured the 2024 NCAA West Region Championships individual title. While that duo, which helped Alaska finish second with a score of 74 last year, may be irreplaceable, the Nanooks still earned 69 points and checked in at fourth in the preseason poll. Junior Tabitha Williams is the top returner in terms of finish at the 2024 championship meet, as she placed 22nd (22:34.0 minutes) as a sophomore. Senior Teegan Silva (35th place, 23:13.7 minutes) and sophomore Lucca Duke (41st place, 23:38.2 minutes) are each also back after finishing in the top half of last year’s field.
 
Projected fifth in the preseason poll is a Seattle Pacific women’s unit that remains strong even with the departure of All-American Annika Esvelt, who finished third at last year’s conference meet. Senior Maya Ewing earned all-conference by taking fourth place (21:43.3 minutes) last season and is the Falcons’ top prospect to be in contention for the individual title. Matise Mulch also returns to the lineup after posting a 16th-place finish (22:22.7 minutes), while Anna Prussian (34th place, 23:12.6 minutes) and Katelyn Flolo (45th place, 23:44.0 minutes) are two more upperclassmen to watch.
 
Western Oregon’s women were listed sixth in the preseason poll with 55 points, matching their sixth-place finish (162) at last year’s conference meet. Kyla Potratz figures to be in contention for all-conference honors this fall, after placing 19th (22:29.9 minutes) as a sophomore in 2024. Potratz went on to claim the gold medal in the 10,000 meters at the GNAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships last May. Other top-half finishers at the 2024 conference meet who are back for WOU include juniors Amelia Merritt (T37th place, 23:16.8 minutes), Maslin Sigler (T37th place, 23:16.8 minutes) and Kaydence Nguyen (44th place, 23:42.4 minutes).
 
Checking in at seventh in the preseason poll with 43 points was Central Washington. The Wildcats were seventh at the 2024 GNAC Championships, totaling a team score of 181 points. CWU’s top finishers at last year’s conference meet are both back on the roster, as Payton Conover and Hannah Pidduck made names for themselves as freshmen in 2024. Conover tied for 31st place (23:03.7 minutes) and Pidduck was right behind in 33rd place (23:12.0 minutes). Also back on the roster with experience in last year’s meet are sophomore Araceli Esquivel (42nd place, 23:38.9 minutes), Camryn Holterhoff (43rd place, 23:41.6 minutes), Helayna Bonilla (63rd place, 24:22.8 minutes), and Julie Johnson (68th place, 24:36.6 minutes).
 
A Northwest Nazarene women’s team that placed eighth last fall was projected in the same position in the preseason poll, totaling 31 points in the voting. Senior Morgan Erler is back on the roster after pacing the squad in 2024, finishing 18th at the championship meet with a time of 22:29.2 minutes. Other NNU returners who finished in the top-60 last fall are Keelin Stewart (47th place, 23:45.8 minutes), McKenna Lechner (50th place, 23:52.4 minutes), Rebecca Darwood (53rd place, 23:56.4 minutes), Paige Trautman (54th place, 23:58.5 minutes) and Casey Collom (59th place, 24:14.2 minutes).
 
Montana State Billings occupied the ninth spot in the preseason poll with 19 points, after finishing ninth at last year’s conference meet (279 points). The top returner for the Yellowjackets is senior Cecily Eagleton, who finished 48th (23:46.6 minutes) at last year’s championship race. Also back for MSUB are Toree Manning (82nd place, 25:27.8 minutes), Gabi Becker (84th place, 25:34.2 minutes), Chloe Shennum (85th place, 25:37.8 minutes), and Emma Weaver (91st place, 27:03.2 minutes).
 
The Saint Martin’s women completed the preseason poll, appearing 10th with 18 points. The Saints were 10th as a team at last year’s conference meet and were led by 2024 senior Kya Ramirez who took 52nd place (23:55.7 minutes).
 

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GNAC Men’s Cross Country Season Outlook
The preseason favorite Viking men will be led by returners Jared Alderfer, Jonah Billings, Sten Brakstad, Logan Werner, George Fernandez, and Will Henry. Alderfer earned all-conference in 2024, placing ninth (24:47.0 minutes) after turning in a 17th-place finish (24:51.6 minutes) in his GNAC debut in 2022. Billings is the reigning GNAC Freshman of the Year, placing 12th (24:56.3 minutes) in his conference championship debut last fall. Brakstad was 21st (25:23.3 minutes) and Fernandez was 30th (25:45.0 minutes) among last year’s field of 80 runners, as the Vikings hold the most returning depth of any GNAC team. Henry also has a GNAC rep under his belt, placing 31st (26:33.1 minutes) as a sophomore in 2023. Redshirt freshman Eli Williams, who won the GNAC gold medal in the steeplechase at the outdoor championships last May, is also projected to make his collegiate cross country debut. WWU lost each of the last two GNAC individual cross country champions from its roster, in 2024 winner Jeret Gillingham (24:18.3 minutes) and 2023 champion Kevin McDermott (24:43.5 minutes). Other key departures include 2024 all-conference performers Ryan Clough (4th place, 24:36.4 minutes) and George Karamitsos (7th place, 24:44.4 minutes).
 
The biggest threat to the Vikings’ title streak is projected to be a Northwest Nazarene men’s team that is coming off a runner-up finish in 2024. The Nighthawks totaled 73 points last season with five runners finishing in the top-20. Leading the pack is all-conference performer Brody Kemble, who was 10th (24:47.3 minutes) last fall. Senior Grady Mylander (13th place, 25:02.2 minutes), junior Ian Stockett (14th place, 25:03.9 minutes), junior Asher Ingram (17th place, 25:13.2 minutes), sophomore Neftali Menendez (29th place, 25:44.8 minutes) and junior Micah Chi (45th place, 26:15.2 minutes) are all back on the roster as well. Carter Stedman, who contributed with a 19th-place finish last year, was the lone loss among conference competitors for NNU.
 
The Alaska Anchorage men earned 73 points in the preseason voting on their way to the No. 3 slot in the poll. The Seawolves were third in the team standings last fall with 86 points, including a pair of all-conference performances. Back on the roster for UAA is senior John Peckham, who was the team’s leading runner in fifth place (24:40.0 minutes) in 2024. Ty Elliott, who placed 15th (25:08.5 minutes), Matt Rongitsch (32nd place, 25:46.1 minutes) and Samuel Roy (39th place, 26:07.7 minutes) are other returners who finished in the top half of the field of competitors in 2024. UAA will have to replace Zachary Grams, who finished sixth (24:42.4 minutes) last year.
 
There is optimism surrounding the Western Oregon men’s team, which collected 72 points to finish just behind the Seawolves at fourth in the preseason polling. The Wolves wound up fourth at last year’s conference meet with a team score of 95 points, riding the all-conference performance of junior Logan Parker (8th place, 24:45.8 minutes). Also back for the Wolves this fall is junior Remedan Seman, who checked in at 24th place (25:38.0 minutes) last year. Matthew Resnik had a strong freshman campaign in 2024, culminating in a 28th-place finish (25:43.9 minutes) at the GNAC Championships. Isaiah Rodriguez, the silver medalist in the 800 meters at last year’s GNAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships, is also back on the roster after placing 37th (26:00.0 minutes) last year.
 
The Central Washington men’s unit appeared at No. 5 in the preseason poll with a total of 57 points. The Wildcats bid farewell to two-time GNAC runner-up Johan Correa, who finished second in both 2023 and 2024. Correa went on to garner both all-region and All-America honors last fall, and he was the 2023 NCAA West Region Championships race winner. Also absent from the roster this fall is 2024 GNAC Newcomer of the Year Ramon Rodriguez, who placed third at the conference meet (24:32.9 minutes). CWU’s top returning name is senior Luke Hurd, who finished 27th (25:42.6 minutes) last fall. Charlie Naught (38th place, 26:05.0 minutes), Max Hutton (40th place, 26:09.6 minutes) and Ethan Moore (76th place, 28:46.4 minutes) are the other Wildcats who competed in last year’s conference meet.
 
Simon Fraser’s men took the No. 6 spot in the preseason poll, garnering 56 points in the voting. The Red Leafs were senior-heavy in 2024, with their top-three finishers Jose Castro (20th place, 25:17.1 minutes), Benjamin Schoening (25th place, 25:38.7 minutes) and Aiden Good (26th place, 25:42.2 minutes) all being upperclassmen. SFU totaled a score of 153 to place sixth in the team standings.
 
Appearing seventh in the preseason poll were the Alaska Nanook men, who received 39 points. The Nanooks finished seventh in last year’s team race with a score of 196 and have their top performer back on the roster. Junior Ben Dohlby returns after checking in at 31st place (25:45.3 minutes) last season. Senior Finn Morley is another upperclassman with experience, finishing 53rd (26:36.3 minutes) in 2024.
 
Seattle Pacific’s men checked in at No. 8 in the preseason poll, accumulating 32 points. The Falcons’ top performer from last year who is back on the roster is Silas Demmert, who took 42nd place (26:10.8 minutes) in SPU’s eighth-place team finish last fall. Isaac Venable, who was also in the top-50 (48th place, 26:28.4 minutes), is also back on the roster for his senior campaign.
 
The Saint Martin’s men were slated at No. 9 in the preseason poll with 21 total points, with their top finisher at the 2024 championships being junior Elijah Dale (44th place, 26:14.0 minutes). Completing the men’s poll with 10 points earned was Montana State Billings. The Yellowjackets will rely on senior Wyatt May, who has the most experience and placed 68th (27:35.6 minutes) at last year’s conference meet.