The men’s and women’s cross country teams slashed all expectations to pull off a dual win at the 2024 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Cross Country Championships, landing five women in the top 15 and five men in the top 10.
The MIAC championships were held in the Natural Lands on the St. Olaf cross country course. The weather was partly cloudy and 54 degrees Fahrenheit, making for a nice day of racing.
Cross country running is scored “golf style,” with the lowest combined score winning the meet. First place scores one point, second scores two, and so on. Seven runners race, and only the top five finishers from each team score points for their team. The sixth and seventh runners are still important to the race because they can edge out scoring runners from other teams.
The men’s team won the championship for the third consecutive year, posting an all-time high winning gap and beating out St. John’s University by a 73-point margin. Kevin Turlington ’26 was the first finisher for the Oles with a time of 24:49.1 in the 8-kilometer race. He was followed by Andrew Skemp ’25 at 24:58.6, Jack Deaver ’26 at 25:05.0, and Gael Manzur ’26 in 25:05.7 respectively. Ignatius Fitzgerald ’26 rounded out St. Olaf’s top five with a time of 25:19.1. T
The Oles had the home course advantage with championships being right in their backyard, but the margin of victory is the largest ever in the MIAC.
The women’s team also won the championship, beating out cross-town rival — and former national champion — Carleton College. The Oles scored a program best low of 34 points, with Alison Bode ’25 finishing first on the team and second overall in the 6-kilometer race with a time of 22:04.4. She was directly followed by Lauren Walda ’26 at 22:08.3, Ella Landis ’26 in 22:51.5, and Isabel Wyatt ’26 in 22:57.8. Grace Moeller ’26 rounded out St. Olaf’s top five in a time of 23:02.0.
Both teams will advance to the NCAA DIII Regionals, which will be held at home in Northfield, on the Hill, at the Bill Huyck Championship Course on Nov. 16.
