The Youngstown State men's and women's cross-country programs will return to the state of Indiana this Friday when they compete in the NCAA Great Lakes Regional Championships at Angel Mounds Cross Country Course in Evansville, Ind.
Women's Preview
The women's 6K race will begin at 11 a.m. ET (10 a.m. CT).
The seven women competing for YSU are: McKinley Fielding, Maggie Hopple, Lillian Katsaras, Karis McElhaney, Jenna Razavi, Caleigh Richards, and Megan Stafford.
The YSU women are coming off winning their second Horizon League title in program history and first in 11 years on Nov. 1 at the Mastodon Cross Country Course. McKinley Fielding blistered through the field and won the league's individual title with a 6K time of 20:10.9, which broke her old program record by 30 seconds, and was 36 seconds quicker than the second-place finisher. She became just the second YSU female to win a Horizon League XC title, joining Morgan Cole, who was victorious in 2022. Caleigh Richards was the next Penguin to cross the finish line, placing sixth with a time of 21:08.5, while Jenna Razavi finished closely behind her in ninth with a time of 21:16.8. Freshman Maggie Hopple finished 18th with a time of 21:49, while Megan Stafford placed 21st, clocking a time of 21:52.8, and Lillian Katsaras finished 24th with a time of 21:55.0. Karis McElhaney wrapped up her first conference championship meet with a 36th-place finish, clocking a time of 22:26.7, while Molly Hopple finished in 39th with a time of 22:29.4.
Fielding and Richards were named First Team All-Horizon League, while Razavi garnered Second Team All-Horizon League honors.
Men's Preview
The men's 10K race will begin at approximately Noon ET (11 a.m. CT).
The seven men competing for YSU are: Owen Brady, Patrick Burgos, Ethan Cope, Brock Farris, Blaze Fichter, Tobias Jones, and Sage Vavro.
The YSU men won their fourth-consecutive Horizon League championship two weeks ago, becoming just third program in conference history to achieve that feat, joining Notre Dame (1988-1994) and Butler (2002-2011). Patrick Burgos led the Penguins with a fourth-place finish, clocking a time of 23:55.7. He was named the Horizon League Men's Freshman of the Year. The Penguins placed six runners in the top 20, as Blaze Fichter finished sixth (24:00.2), Tobias Jones placed 10th (24:09.7), Sage Vavro was 11th (24:15.0), Owen Brady finished 19th (24:33.8), and Brock Farris rounded out the top 20 right behind Brady, clocking a time of 24:36.3. Ethan Cope finished 27th place with a time of 24:41.7.
Burgos and Fichter were dubbed as First Team All-Horizon League selections, while Jones and Vavro received second-team honors.
Meet the Field
The Great Lakes Regional Championships will feature 35 schools from four states (Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin) and nine different conferences.
Conference Breakdown
Atlantic Coast (1)
Atlantic-10 (1)
Big East (3)
Big 10 (6)
Big 12 (1)
Horizon (9)
Mid-American (10)
Missouri Valley (3)
Ohio Valley (1)
How to Qualify for Nationals
The 2025 NCAA D1 National Championships will take place at Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia, Missouri on Saturday, Nov. 22. It will be streamed live on ESPNU with the women's race at 10:20 a.m. ET and the men's race at 11:10 a.m. ET.
The top two finishing teams at the Great Lakes Regional Championships will automatically qualify for the national championships, while the rest of the pack will have to wait for the NCAA DI Cross Country Subcommittee to choose 14 at-large teams across nine regions to fill out the 32-team field.
The top four individual finishers from each region will punch their ticket to the National Championship races to make up 36 of the 38 individual participants, while the other two spots will be at-large, and go to the highest placing individuals at a regional that were not automatic qualifiers.
For live updates and results throughout the 2025 season, follow @YSUTrackFieldXC on X.
