GREEN BAY, Wis. (naccsports.org) --- Aurora University placed five runners in the top 10 to capture the women's team title at the 2025 Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) Cross Country Championships at UW-Green Bay's Shorewood Cross Country Course.

The Spartans finished 3-4-7-8-10 to total 32 points and finish 15 markers clear of runner-up Concordia University Wisconsin (47). Host St. Norbert College took third with 68 points, while Milwaukee School of Engineering (109) was fourth. Wisconsin Lutheran College was fifth with 141 points, followed by Illinois Institute of Technology (174), Rockford University (187), and Concordia University Chicago (191). Benedictine University edged Dominican University, 280-281, for ninth place, while Alverno College (331) rounded out the team scoring. Edgewood University fielded individual competitors at this year's championships and did not record a team score.

Concordia Wisconsin's Emma Ahrens (22:35.7) led virtually from wire-to-wire en route to the individual title. Ahrens was matched by Aurora's N'Dya Fields over the first kilometer but broke out over the next two kilometers, building a 22-second lead by the 3-kilometer mark. She continued to build the lead, eventually winning by a full minute over teammate Melanie Arvis (23:36.0). Aurora's Mika Fields (23:46.0) and N'Dya Fields (23:49.6) were third and fourth, respectively, while St. Norbert's Kayla Wesaw (23:50.3) was fifth.

Joining Ahrens and Arvis in capturing all-conference honors for CUW was Danielle Van Grinsven, who finished sixth (23:51.5). The top 10 was rounded out by Aurora's Emma Jasutis (seventh, 23:55.1), Alex Gonzalez (eighth, 23:55.4), and Mallory Arroyo (10th, 24:16.8), and MSOE's Ella Kwaterski (ninth, 24:04.6). 

MSOE's Alexis Dorner (11th, 24:21.2), Rockford's Rebekah Starwalt (12th, 24:26.8), St. Norbert's Kera Riley (13th, 24:33.3) and Mollie Madsen (15th, 24:40.5), and Illinois Tech's Sophia Halama (14th, 24:40.1) also earned all-conference honors by virtue of a top-15 finish.

Wesaw was named NACC Freshman of the Year as the top-finishing true freshman at this year's championships. She is the second-straight Green Knight to win the honor as Madison Gramblicka was honored a year ago.

Ahrens is the third Concordia Wisconsin runner to win the NACC women's individual title, joining Samantha Gries (2009) and LaNea Bartel (Spring 2021).

The coaching staff at Aurora University was recognized as the 2025 NACC Women's Cross Country Coaching Staff of the Year. It is the seventh time an Aurora coach or coaching staff has been honored.

While there is limited action next weekend, the next big events on the NACC cross country calendar are the NCAA Division III Regional Championships on Saturday, Nov. 15. Illinois-based NACC schools will compete in the Midwest Region Championships at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa, while Wisconsin-based NACC schools will compete in the North Region Championships at Whitetail Golf Course in Colfax, Wisconsin. The 2025 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships are slated for Saturday, Nov. 22, at Roger Milliken Research Park in Spartansburg, S.C.