McLean County Times

The Illinois State University cross country teams are set to compete in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Championships on Friday, October 31. The event will take place at Angel Mounds in Evansville, Indiana. The women’s 6K race is scheduled for 10:30 a.m., followed by the men’s 8K at 11:30 a.m. An awards ceremony will follow at 12:20 p.m. Tickets for spectators will be available at the gate for $5.

At last year’s MVC Championships, the Illinois State men finished second while the women placed sixth. William Sinclair secured an individual title for the men's team in 2024, and Rachael Brewer was the last woman from ISU to win an individual title in 2013. Six Redbird runners made it into the program's top-10 list during last year's championship, marking one of their strongest performances.

Historically, Illinois State’s men have won ten conference titles, most recently in the 2020-21 season. The women have claimed seven MVC championships, with their latest victory occurring in 2012.

The Redbirds have produced several honorees over time: there have been 88 Men's First Team All-MVC selections and 67 Women's First Team All-MVC selections. Additionally, ISU has had fourteen men and seven women earn All-Conference Honorable Mention status. The program also counts thirty-eight Men's MVC Scholar Athletes and forty-six Women's MVC Scholar Athletes among its ranks, as well as six athletes who have received MVC Athlete of the Year honors.

In advance of this week’s meet, both ISU squads were picked to finish third according to a pre-championship poll conducted by conference head coaches.

Head coach Jeff Bovee commented on his teams’ prospects ahead of Friday's races: "Both the men's and women's teams have better races in them. On paper, we might look top-three or top-four, but we're capable of much higher. It's about getting everyone to do their part, know their role and run a good team race. It's not about individual glory. It's about working on shortening the time between the first and fifth finishers and running as a team."

For Friday's competition, key runners for the women's team include Nora Brady (junior), Cameron Crump (freshman), Maggie Reed (senior), Vivianna Sanfilippo (fifth year), Pauline Schedler (freshman), Astrid Van Breedam (sophomore), Brooke Zeibert (freshman), and Colleen Zeibert (sophomore). The men's lineup features Julian Baker (sophomore), Luke Barham (sophomore), Will Gelon (sophomore), Blake Oleson (junior), Ethan Reynoso (junior), Logan Scott (freshman), Kane Shields (junior), Cayde de Waal (junior), and Josh Weeks (sophomore).