BILLINGS, Mont. - The Nanooks cross country teams competed at the 2025 GNAC Cross Country Championships this morning in Billings, Mont. at Amend Park. Both the men's and women's teams finished eighth-place in their races.
The women's team raced first, hitting the course at 9 a.m. AKST.
Lucca Duke led the Nanooks in the women's 6k race, placing eighth with a time of 21:40.1 and an average pace of 5:49. Her eighth-place finish earned the Nanooks eight team points and also gave Duke an All-Conference finish as the top-10 finishers are named All-GNAC. The sophomore earned her first-career GNAC All-Conference finish. "Lucca had another fantastic effort, executing brilliantly," said head coach
Conrad Haber. "She made all of the right tactical moves during the early stages of the race to put herself in a position to open up over the last 1k; it was a really fun race to watch."
Following Duke closely was
Tabitha Williams. Williams, a junior, finished 20th overall in the women's 6k, bringing home 20 points for Alaska. She finished the race in 21:56.8 with an average pace of 5:53.
Rory Claussen was the third Nanooks finisher, taking 62nd overall with a time of 24:12.3. She earned 56 points for the Nanooks as the freshman completed her first GNAC Championships. The fourth scorer for Alaska was
Riga Grubis. Grubis finished behind Claussen by one place, taking 63rd in 24:29.3 for 57 team points. The final scoring finisher for Alaska was
Madison Schuh. Schuh posted a 64th-place finish in 24:36.7 for 58 points.
Sarah Baum (74th, 25:17.2),
Teegan Silva (75th, 25:20.2), and
Devyn Townsend (82nd, 26:31.8) were the final racers for the Nanooks in the women's 6k. "The women's team continues to develop with each competition as they work on the different aspects of their race execution," added Haber. "The squad showed great aggression on the course, led by Tabby [Williams] setting the tone off the starting line; I'm excited to watch the women's team put it all together at the Regional Championships in two weeks."
In the women's race, Western Washington won the team championship with a score of 37. Seattle Pacific took second with 92 points and Alaska Anchorage took third with 105 points. Maya Ewing of Seattle Pacific won the individual women's title this year with a winning time of 21:04.7.
The men's race followed the women's race at 9:40 a.m. AKST.
Dexter Delaney led the Nanooks in the men's 8k race. The freshman used a strong surge in the final 1k to grab a top 10 finish, the first-ever GNAC All-Conference finish for the Alaska Nanooks men's cross country team since joining the GNAC in 2001. "Dexter had a historic race, achieving several firsts for the Nanooks men's program," said
Conrad Haber after the men's race this morning. "We thought the race might be tactical, so Dexter remained patient and let the race develop before digging deep over the last 1000m to secure a top 10 finish."
Delaney's finish also earned him the 2025 GNAC Men's Cross Country Freshman of the Year, another program first for the Nanooks men's team. He finished the 8k race in 24:39.5 with an average pace of 4:58 throughout the 8k.
Ian Baker was the second Nanooks men's racer to finish this morning. He claimed 39th in 25:50.4 for 35 points. He had an average pace of 5:12.
Nick Iverson was the third finisher for Alaska and was the final freshman in the trio to lead the men's team today. Iverson finished 50th with a time of 26:14.5 and an average pace of 5:17.
Finn Morley and
Blake Hanley were the final two scoring racers for Alaska in the men's 8k championship. Morley was close behind Iverson, taking 59th with a time of 26:37.5. Hanley was also close behind, taking 64th in 26:59.0.
Clem Taylor-Roth (65th, 27:00.6),
Ned Peters (69th, 27:27.0), and
Brady Benedict (71st, 27:36.2) were the final racers for the Nanooks men's team. "The men's team continued their progression, as this was the first conference championship for a majority of the athletes competing today," said Haber. "The lessons they learned on the course today will serve as the foundation for what they will do in the years to come; we are entering an exciting era of men's cross country at UAF."
In the men's standings, Western Washington claimed the title with 37 points. Alaska Anchorage took second with 58 points and Northwest Nazarene claimed third with 65 points. John Peckham of Alaska Anchorage won the individual men's title this year with a winning time of 24:04.5.
The Nanooks have a weekend off before they compete at the NCAA Division II West Regional Championships. The Regional Championships will be on Nov. 8, 2025 in Monmouth, Ore. at the Ash Creek Preserve on the campus of Western Oregon University.
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