The 2026 NSIC Cross Country Championships will take place in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on Saturday, November 7 at Yankton Trails, hosted by Augustana University. The men's 8,000-meter race is scheduled for 10 a.m. while the women's 6,000-meter race will follow at 11:15 a.m. The women's race will have 16 teams competing while 15 teams will run in the men's race.

Fans can follow the action via social media (#NSICCC) on X. 

The Augustana men, as a team, will be in search of its 16th NSIC championship in the past 17 seasons. The Vikings enter the championship ranked 25th in the USTFCCCA Poll. MSU Moorhead Jared Gregoire (Greg-u-ar) returns as the reigning NSIC Champion, along with the second to fourth place finishers from a year ago. 

A new women's individual champion will be crowned this season as reigning champion Sophia Taarud graduated from Winona State. Winona State is the defending team champion and is currently ranked 14 in the nation in the latest USTFCCCA ranking.

The NCAA regional will take place on Saturday, November 21st at Yankton Trails, hosted by Augustana University. The NCAA Championships are set for Saturday, December 4 at Rim Rock in Lawrence, Kansas. 

DOG WATCH: A number of runners will be looking to improve performances at the meet from a season ago. On the women's side, sunior Ellie Hanowski finished 12th overall en route to a NSIC Second Team All-Conference finisher with a season best time of 22:27.3 in 2025, while now junior Claire Becker (23:13.4, 23rd overall) and senior Rachel Ulrich (32nd, 23:34.2) were the fourth and fifth scoring runners for the Bulldogs, respectively. 

On the men's side, then freshman Isaac Dickenson led the way with a 24th overall finish on a personal record time of 26:20.49. Current senior Noah Foster placed 60th with a season best effort of 27:20.95, while junior Connor Bialka finished right beside him in 61st with a time of 27:20.96 – a season best for Bialka. Senior Nolan Bakken (27:34.9, 68th was the fourth UMD finisher – the Bulldogs have four-of-their-five top-5 runners returning to run Saturday.

UMD'S HISTORY IN THE CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP: 

ON THE MEN'S SIDE: The Bulldogs men have won 12 NSIC Cross Country titles in program history, including a historic 11-consecutive season streak that began in 1993 and went through 2003 and still stands as the longest championship streak in conference history. UMD's only other title came before the streak in 1987, a tie with Moorhead State.

Over that championship spree, UMD had nine individual champions, and in all had 10. The last Bulldog to win the title was Robb Winterfield in 2003.

More recently, UMD has had a back-to-back Elite 18 Award winner – Grant Pulver in 2016 and again in 2017, and just last season, Jack Van Kempen became the Bulldogs first ever NSIC Men's Cross Country Outstanding Senior of the Year (2024).

Last season, UMD finished ninth as a team and then freshman Isaac Dickenson led the way with a 24th overall finish

ON THE WOMEN'S SIDE: The UMD women's cross country program has won 15 titles, including their own impressive run of 12-consecutive from 1992 through 2003. The most recent title came in 2015, and the Bulldogs won two of out three years over the 2013-15 seasons.

UMD has had 13 individual titles, including eight runners who won back-to-back titles. The Bulldogs had five-straight individual title winners from 1997 through 2001, with Brandy Griffith winning in 1997, Katie Huntley winning back-to-back in 1998 and 1999, and Katie Huntley repeating as champion in 2000 and 2001 to round out the title conference hold. Emi Trost was the last NSIC title holder after she won in 2016.

The Bulldog women have had three NSIC Newcomer of the Year honorees – Shaelyn Hostager in 2025, Cailee Peterson in 2023, and before that, Sam Rivard in 2013, the year the award was started.

UMD has also had three NSIC Cross Country Elite 18 winners – Morgan Radel in 2022 and Elizabeth VanLoon, who captured the award last fall (2025) and the season before (2024). VanLoon also was also voted by the league coaches as the winner of the 2025 NSIC Women's Cross Country Outstanding Senior of the Year Award at the ceremony, the first Bulldog woman to land the award after Van Kempen earned it in 2024.

The Bulldogs finished third as a team last season, led by graduate runner Hostager, the top finisher competing in their first year of NSIC competition. She was third overall – making her an NSIC First Team All-Conference runner as well – with a time of 21:57.10, a season best, and the first finisher for UMD.