Contact: Taiah Gallisath-Poklop, Associate Director of Athletics Communication, 630-637-5302

Results
 
Oct. 16, 2026 – The North Central College women's cross country team took a midday trip to Peoria, Ill. over fall break to compete in the Bradley Pink Classic Friday afternoon. The Cardinals were the highest-finishing Division III team in the all-divisions field, placing fifth overall while Mariangela Popoca led the way for the Cardinals with a top-20 finish.
 
Grand Valley State University took the team win with 34 points, followed by the University of South Dakota in second with 56 points. The University of St. Thomas (Minn.) finished third with 78 points and Drake University was fourth with 177 points. The Cardinals followed the Division I and II schools, placing fifth with 195 points.
 
Through the first 2k, Popoca led the way for the Cardinals, sitting 31st at the first checkpoint. Dylan Moeller was next in 42nd, with Lily Anderson 10 spots behind in 52nd. Popoca continued to climb three spots to sit 28th at the halfway point.
 
Yarecci Salmeron found a new gear between the halfway mark and the 4k checkpoint, moving up 13 spots to sit 81st with 2k left to go.
 
Popoca was the top Cardinal finisher for the fourth time this season, taking 19th place overall in a career best time of 22:23.9. She shaved 41 seconds off her previous best set two weeks ago on Oct. 3. Moeller made a final push to finish 32nd in a personal best time of 22:43.8, with Anderson rounding out the Cardinals' top 50 finishers in 43rd with a 23:07.0 time.
 
Salmeron continued to climb and finished 71st in 23:35.2, while Tessa Hatt was the Cardinals' last scoring runner in 78th in a major personal best time of 23:39.6. She cut over a minute off of her previous fastest time.
 
North Central will take a break from competition and shift its attention to the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin Championships on Saturday, Oct. 31. Carroll University will serve as meet host at St. James Farm in Warrenville, Ill.