ELLENSBURG, Wash.- The Central Washington University cross country teams head to Billings, Montana to compete in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships on Saturday, October 25. The meet kicks off with the women's 6K race at 9:00 a.m. PST, followed by the men's 8K race at 10:00 a.m. PST.
 
MEET INFO
Date: Saturday, October 25, 2025
Location: Amend Park - Billings, Montana
Women's Race: 10:00 a.m. PST – 6,000 meters
Men's Race: 11:00 a.m. PST – 8,00 meters
Championships Home Page: 2025 GNAC Cross Country Championships - Great Northwest Athletic Conference
Competitors: All 10 conference members will compete in the GNAC Championships.
 
QUOTING ASSISTANT COACH MATT LAYTEN
"I'm excited for our group this weekend. We spend the entire season working on "our process" in how to train, prepare, and execute everything that we need to do to thrive in championship-level moments. Our squad wants to be really good at this, and they don't just "talk the talk", but they "walk the walk" in how they go about making that a reality every day. They have upheld our "Central Washington standard" for how we do things throughout this season, so I feel good about us continuing that on into the postseason."
 
LAST TIME OUT
Central Washington University cross country continued to impress with solid performances at both the Bill Dellinger Invitational and the Emerald City Open. The Wildcats men's team secured a 10th-place finish, while the women's team placed 11th at the Dellinger meet. The CWU women followed up with a standout performance at the Emerald City Open, earning third place overall.

On the men's side, Luke Hurd led the Wildcats with a 55th-place finish, running a season-best 25:07.54. Kellen McIlnelly followed in 62nd (25:22.10), while Charles Naught and Dima Serafimovici finished back-to-back in 78th and 79th with times of 25:58.00 and 26:06.88. Max Hutton also posted a season best, placing 81st in 26:13.81. Ares Van Straaten (26:25.91) and Ethan Moore (26:32.52) rounded out the lineup in 83rd and 84th.

For the women, Maddy Harrison paced CWU with a personal-best 21:54.33, good for 58th overall. Payton Conover followed in 73rd (22:17.43), with Lillian Neff (88th, 22:47.21), Hannah Pidduck (94th, 22:55.37), and Araceli Esquivel (95th, 23:00.57) close behind. Katie Manly (96th, 23:10.18) and Julie Johnson (100th, 23:39.43) rounded out CWU's top-100 finishers.

The Wildcat women continued their strong form in Seattle, claiming third place as a team. Camryn Holterhoff led the way with a 13th-place finish (24:34.90), just ahead of Paige Huntsinger in 14th (24:43.55). Lexi Titchenal (16th, 25:07.63) and Dawn Hulstedt (17th, 25:13.36) kept CWU's top pack tight. Xitlalli Salinas-Lopez (24th, 26:08.72) and Brynne Williams (29th, 27:11.59) both secured top-30 finishes, while Jessica Henry (34th, 27:37.79) and Natalie Barta (42nd, 29:45.09) rounded out the squad's scoring effort.