Contact: Taiah Gallisath-Poklop, Associate Director of Athletics Communication, 630-637-5302
Written By: Jack Lindsay, Athletics Communcation Graduate Assistant, jlindsay@noctrl.edu

Rock Island, Ill. (Nov. 14) – Coming off its first College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Championship since 2015, the North Central College women's cross country team traveled to Rock Island, Ill., for the Midwest Region Championships.

North Central finished eighth in the team standings with 292 points. The University of Chicago claimed the regional title with 33 points, followed by Washington University in St. Louis with 62 points and Wartburg College with 88 points.

Standout freshman Mariangela Popoca led the Cardinals, placing 38th overall in a time of 22:45.3.

Lily Anderson followed closely behind, placing 44th with a season-best time of 22:51.6. Anderson was 41st at the 1-kilometer mark and maintained her position near the front of the pack throughout the race, running between 41st and 44th place the entire way.

Dylan Moeller finished 65th in 23:22.0. Molly Sheridan was next across the line, placing 72nd in 23:25.4. Sheridan closed strongly over the final kilometer, improving from 75th to 72nd place.

Tessa Hatt finished directly behind Sheridan in 73rd place with a time of 23:27.6. Hatt gained eight positions between the 2.1K and 3K marks while covering the segment in 3:37.1.

Yarecci Salmeron rounded out North Central's scoring five, placing 75th in 23:30.5. Salmeron was 92nd at the 1-kilometer mark before moving up to 80th by the 4.6K mark and eventually finishing 75th, marking the largest position gain from start to finish among the Cardinals.

Marissa Magana crossed the finish line in 24:00.4 to place 101st as North Central's sixth runner.

National qualifying teams and individuals will be announced by the NCAA in a selection release on Sunday.