The University of Minnesota Duluth men's and women's cross country teams will run for the first time in 2026 on Friday in Prescott, Wis. at the UWRF River Town Invitational. The women's 6k race will get underway at 5:00 p.m., while the men will hit the 8k course at 6:00 p.m. Both races will be held at the Prescott High School Cross Country Course.
AT THE HELM: UMD head cross country coach Brette Jensen begins her fifth cross country season with the Bulldogs after taking the program over on Dec. 8, 2021. Jensen – who was promoted to the Director of Track and Field and Cross Country in August – coached the Bulldog squads to a men's ninth place finish and women's third place finish in the 2025 NSIC Cross Country Championship, and helped Shaelyn Hostager to a third place finish and All-Region honor in the Division II Central Region Championships.
THEY'RE BACK: The Bulldogs return to the River Town Invitational two years after both teams clinched team titles in 2024 and one season after the women won back-to-back meets (2025 and 2024). The men's side finished third last season, led by then freshman Isaac Dickenson in eighth with a time of 26:55.4. UMD's second highest finisher was current junior Connor Bialka with a 27:18.3, good enough for 12th and now senior Noah Foster was the third Bulldog in in 16th with a time of 27:35.1.
The UMD women ran to title with the help from three top-five finishers, including then senior Elizabeth VanLoon in second (23:24.9) and current senior Ellie Hanowski in fourth. Junior Claire Becker and sophomore Sadie Eicher also placed in the top-10 -- Becker in seventh (23:44.9) and Eicher in ninth (24:08.3).
ONES TO WATCH: The Bulldogs lost Hostager to graduation, but runners like Hanowski will look to make even bigger strides in 2026 over the ground gained in 2025. In fact, the Forest Lake, Minn. native finished with a season-best 6k effort at the NCAA Division II Central Region Cross Country Championships with a time of 22:07.3.
Dickenson returns with a season under his belt after consistently finishing in the top spot for the Bulldogs all of last season. A product of Solon Springs, Wis., Dickenson ran a season-fastest 8k at the NSIC Conference Championships last year, a time of 26:20.5.
Both runners were named 2026 NSIC Runners to Watch in August.
