BISMARCK, ND – University of Mary men's and women's cross country begin their 2026 campaign at McDowell Dam as the team will host the Marauders Home Opener on Friday, Sept. 11. The men's race will be at 4:00 p.m. and the women's race will follow at 5:00 p.m.

SEASON PREVIEW
Both the men's and women's teams were projected to finish top-five in the Northern Sun according to the conference's preseason coaches' poll. The men were picked 4^th and the women were picked 5^th. Of the 10 athletes that scored points at the NSIC Championships last year for both teams, 7 are back with the Marauders.

ATHLETES TO WATCH
Junior Gideon Hammah was named UMary's Athlete to Watch for the men's team. He had an All-NSIC finish last year in cross country season, placing 9^th before winning the 800m at the NSIC Outdoor Championships.

Senior transfer Amanda Overgaauw was named UMary's Athlete to Watch for the women's team. She joins the Marauders from Minnesota State University, where she competed at the NCAA Central Region Championships (40^th) and the NCAA National Championships (179^th) last year. She also reached the NCAA Championships with Augustana University in 2023.

NEW FACES
The women's team added three athletes in addition to Overgaauw. Lynette Kalthoff and Taylor Bourgoine are freshmen and Katherine Ryan is a junior who joined the squad after competing for UMary Swimming for two years.

The men's team added five freshmen as Davin Christen, Tristan Crittenden, Lucas Finders, Landon Herr, and Jacob Windsor are new to UMary.

POINT SCORERS
UMary's distance runners made big contributions to the track and field team's success at the indoor and outdoor conference championships. Listed with the number of events they finished on the podium, those point scorers were: Ian Butman (3), Josiah DeMaris (1), Gideon Hammah (3), Joseph Ringhand (3), Giselle Jahner (4), Amber Rosemeier (3), and Tori Stepka (1). Rosemeier (800m, DMR), Jahner (DMR), and Hammah (800m) were all NSIC Champions.

#marauders#