University of St. Thomas Athletics
Saturday, November 1
Ashland, Neb.
10:00 a.m. CT
vs
Summit League Championship
Pauly sets program record, Westerlund earns all-league honors at Summit League Championships
11/1/2025 3:44:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country
Poppler finishes as Newcomer of the Championship as both cross country teams finish fifth
ASHLAND, Neb. – St. Thomas Cross Country wrapped up a strong showing at the 2025 Summit League Championships on Saturday at Mahoney State Park, as both the men's and women's teams placed fifth overall. Sophomore Olivia Pauly set a program record in the women's 6K race to earn All-Summit League honors, while junior Max Westerlund also earned All-Summit League Second Team honors and freshman Casey Poppler claimed Newcomer of the Championship for the men.
WOMEN'S RECAP
The St. Thomas women also earned a fifth-place finish with 126 points, led by the record-breaking performance from Pauly. The sophomore clocked 21:01.54, breaking the previous St. Thomas program record of 21:09.7 set by Molly Desotell at the 2024 Pink Classic, and earning All-Summit League Second Team honors.
Freshman Layla Vennink placed 20th (21:22.53, PR), while sophomore Lindsay Berg finished 28th (21:39.98). Rounding out the Tommie scoring were sophomore Sophie Yetter (37th, 21:55.27, PR) and junior Elsie Kmecak (38th, 21:56.14, PR).
North Dakota captured both the women's individual and team titles.
MEN'S RECAP
The Tommie men tallied 115 points to finish fifth in the team standings, highlighted by six personal records on the Mahoney State Park course. Westerlund led the way with a 13th-place finish in 24:22.63, marking a personal best and securing a spot on the All-Summit League Second Team. Freshman Casey Poppler followed closely behind in 15th (24:31.73, PR), the highest finishing true freshman in the league to earn Newcomer of the Championship honors. Senior Joe McNeil (27th, 24:47.34, PR), freshman Ethan Foote (31st, 25:01.57, PR), and junior Isaac Nowak (34th, 25:05.97, PR) rounded out the scoring lineup.
South Dakota State claimed both the individual and team men's championships.
QUOTEABLES
Head Coach Ashley Lucas's thoughts following the team's fifth-place finish:
"I am proud of the women and how they battled until the very end. We fell short of our team goals, but I can say without a doubt that each one of them gave it absolutely everything they had today. It is huge for Olivia Pauly to walk away with all-league honors and a new school record. Layla Vennink really went for it and fell just short of all-league but ran great. It was also the first time in program history where have had our top five all break 22:00. We are a very young team filled with hungry individuals who are excited to build for the future and maintain our big goals. Now we will rest up and get prepared to take part in our first ever NCAA Midwest Regional meet."
Head Coach Pete Wareham's thoughts following the Summit League Championships:
"Our focus is always on championship races at the end of the season. Here we are and I like the way we competed as a group. It is a tough league with four teams being regionally ranked over the year. We thought we could have finished ahead of Oral Roberts but just missed, which stings a bit. Max did a nice job leading the group again. He has had a very good season. Casey was named the newcomer of the championship which is a testament to his ability and performance. IT was the best cross country of Joe McNeil's career. Ethan Foote and Isaac Nowak competed well and Nate Meyer did great as a freshman."
UP NEXT
St. Thomas advances to the NCAA Midwest Regional on Friday, Nov. 14, hosted by Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Okla. It will be the St. Thomas Athletics Department's first team to participate in an NCAA postseason event since the beginning of its full-time status as a Division I member.
FOLLOW ALONG
For more information on St. Thomas Cross Country, follow along on X (formerly Twitter) at @TommieXCTF. For more information on St. Thomas Men's and Women's Cross Country, follow along on Instagram at @tommiemtfxc and @tommiewxctf. Tommie Athletics is now on TikTok at @TommieSports.
-- St. Thomas Athletics --
WOMEN'S RECAP
The St. Thomas women also earned a fifth-place finish with 126 points, led by the record-breaking performance from Pauly. The sophomore clocked 21:01.54, breaking the previous St. Thomas program record of 21:09.7 set by Molly Desotell at the 2024 Pink Classic, and earning All-Summit League Second Team honors.
Freshman Layla Vennink placed 20th (21:22.53, PR), while sophomore Lindsay Berg finished 28th (21:39.98). Rounding out the Tommie scoring were sophomore Sophie Yetter (37th, 21:55.27, PR) and junior Elsie Kmecak (38th, 21:56.14, PR).
North Dakota captured both the women's individual and team titles.
MEN'S RECAP
The Tommie men tallied 115 points to finish fifth in the team standings, highlighted by six personal records on the Mahoney State Park course. Westerlund led the way with a 13th-place finish in 24:22.63, marking a personal best and securing a spot on the All-Summit League Second Team. Freshman Casey Poppler followed closely behind in 15th (24:31.73, PR), the highest finishing true freshman in the league to earn Newcomer of the Championship honors. Senior Joe McNeil (27th, 24:47.34, PR), freshman Ethan Foote (31st, 25:01.57, PR), and junior Isaac Nowak (34th, 25:05.97, PR) rounded out the scoring lineup.
South Dakota State claimed both the individual and team men's championships.
QUOTEABLES
Head Coach Ashley Lucas's thoughts following the team's fifth-place finish:
"I am proud of the women and how they battled until the very end. We fell short of our team goals, but I can say without a doubt that each one of them gave it absolutely everything they had today. It is huge for Olivia Pauly to walk away with all-league honors and a new school record. Layla Vennink really went for it and fell just short of all-league but ran great. It was also the first time in program history where have had our top five all break 22:00. We are a very young team filled with hungry individuals who are excited to build for the future and maintain our big goals. Now we will rest up and get prepared to take part in our first ever NCAA Midwest Regional meet."
Head Coach Pete Wareham's thoughts following the Summit League Championships:
"Our focus is always on championship races at the end of the season. Here we are and I like the way we competed as a group. It is a tough league with four teams being regionally ranked over the year. We thought we could have finished ahead of Oral Roberts but just missed, which stings a bit. Max did a nice job leading the group again. He has had a very good season. Casey was named the newcomer of the championship which is a testament to his ability and performance. IT was the best cross country of Joe McNeil's career. Ethan Foote and Isaac Nowak competed well and Nate Meyer did great as a freshman."
UP NEXT
St. Thomas advances to the NCAA Midwest Regional on Friday, Nov. 14, hosted by Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Okla. It will be the St. Thomas Athletics Department's first team to participate in an NCAA postseason event since the beginning of its full-time status as a Division I member.
FOLLOW ALONG
For more information on St. Thomas Cross Country, follow along on X (formerly Twitter) at @TommieXCTF. For more information on St. Thomas Men's and Women's Cross Country, follow along on Instagram at @tommiemtfxc and @tommiewxctf. Tommie Athletics is now on TikTok at @TommieSports.
-- St. Thomas Athletics --
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
/ Men's Cross Country
/ Women's Cross Country
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