Results
MARSHALL, Mich. – The 16th-ranked Calvin University women's cross country team finished second at the 2026 MIAA Cross Country Championships on Saturday in a close meet at Marshall Country Club.
The Knights finished the events with a total of 51 points, trailing first-place Hope College's total of 34 points while topping third-place Trine University's final tally of 73 points.
Calvin finished with its top five runners in the top 16, led by
Ellia Agar (Grand Rapids, Mich./South Christian) in sixth place with a time of 22:00.9.
Hailey Erickson (Arlington Heights, Ill./Prospect) followed right behind Agar in seventh with a time of 22:01.8, while
Emma Wierenga (Grafton, Mass./Whitinsville Christian) took ninth in 22:06.3.
Ayla Holben (DeWitt, Mich./DeWitt) was the next Knight to cross the finish line in 22:14.0 for a 13th-place finish, followed by
Alexis Ball (Grand Rapids, Mich./Traverse City Central) in 16th place with a time of 22:27.3 to round out the Calvin top five.
The next two Calvin runners to cross outside of the top five were
Kihra Moes (South Holland, Ill./Chicago Christian) in 21st place (22:42.6) and
Jonathah Bouwman (Grand Rapids, Mich./Calvin Christian) in 22nd place (22:45.3).
Agar and Erickson both earned All-MIAA First Team recognition with top-eight finishes, while Wierenga, Holben and Holben and Ball each received All-MIAA Second Team honors. Erickson's All-MIAA First Team honor was the third for her career, while Agar and Wierenga each received their second All-MIAA recognition.
COACH'S COMMENT: "It's a good day to be a Knight!" head coach
Nicole Kramer said. "We've had a great build through the regular season, and it was fun to have the team all on the line together one last time. We witnessed 14 personal bests and season bests across the team, and we lived up to our expectation to push from the back and pull from the front. This conference continues to get stronger, and to come away with a runner-up finish is something we should be proud of today. The support from family, alumni, friends and a whole bus of track and field teammates was invaluable out there on the course today, too!
"For Ellia to close as hard as she did and come away with 6th overall speaks volumes to the fortitude she has shown throughout her career and continued promise for more looking ahead. Hailey ran a strong race, putting herself near the front early on and later linked up with Emma. Our 1-7 has continued to evolve and get stronger, which is exciting looking ahead to the postseason. Ayla and Alexis battled for every place to earn All-Conference, which can never be taken lightly. We know anything can happen on race day, and across the squad we put ourselves into the right places throughout the field."
NEXT UP: Calvin cross country will return to action on Saturday, November 14, when it runs in the NCAA III Regional in East Lansing, Michigan.
