Depth Propels No. 17 Women’s Cross Country to 15th MIAA Championship

Hope finishes ahead of the field by 17 points

A deep Hope College women's cross country team raced back to the top of the MIAA on Saturday in Marshall, winning the league championship in convincing fashion.

The 17th-ranked Flying Dutch clocked half of the 20 fastest times during the 6K race at Marshall Country Club, totaling 34 points to finish 17 ahead of the nearest competitor.

The MIAA title is Hope's 15th in the sport and the first since 2023. With the victory, the Flying Dutch swept the women's and men's MIAA titles for the second time in school history and the first time since 1986.

"We had 11 women within 54 seconds of each other; it was phenomenal," head coach Mark Northuis said. "We put three freshmen in our top seven, which was amazing. We were dealing with a little sickness on our team. Other kids stepped up and made an impact for sure."

Junior Olivia Ippel and sophomore Anna Sybenga clocked Hope's two fastest runs.

Ippel (St. Joseph, Michigan / St. Joseph) finished runner-up, crossing the finish line in a personal-best 21 minutes, 39.2 seconds. Only Saint Mary's College freshman Adelaide Lulich was faster with a personal-best 21:32.5.

Sybenga (Grand Rapids, Michigan / Forest Hills Central) clocked a third-place effort of 21:46.7.

Sophomore Miranda Sawvel (Laramie, Wyoming / Centennial) recorded a personal best, eighth-place run of 22:04.7.

Freshman Ruth Miller (Indianapolis, Indiana / Herron) placed 10th after a personal-best time of 22:07.0.

Senior Mary England (Kalamazoo, Michigan / Kalamazoo Central) earned Hope's final point with a personal best, 11th-place 22:10.3.

Six of the next seven Flying Dutch runners finished between 14th and 20th place.

Freshman Marie Gates (Hudsonville, Michigan / Unity Christian) posted a personal best, 14th-place time of 22:14.9.

Freshman Abigail Lewis (Barrington, Illinois / Barrington Community) finished 15th after a personal-best 22:25.7.

Freshman Naomi Diekman (Grandville, Michigan / Jenison) placed 17th after posting a personal-best run of 22:29.2.

Sophomore Dylan Ballin (Brookville, Ohio / Brookville) followed in 18th place by recording a personal-best 22:30.0

Sophomore Taylor Mitchell (Otsego, Michigan / Otsego) finished 19th after a season-best 22:32.1.

Freshman Lillian Cate (Carmel, Indiana / Carmel) took 20th by clocking a personal best, 20th-place run of 22:33.6.

Calvin University finished second with 51 points and was followed by Trine University (73), Saint Mary's College (103), Kalamazoo College (150), Alma College (176), Adrian College (209), host Albion College (223), and The University of Olivet (263).

Hope next races on Saturday, Nov. 14, at 11 a.m. at the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional at Michigan State University's Forest Akers Golf Course.

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Players Mentioned

Dylan Ballin: Sophomore

Mary England: Junior; Exercise Science

Olivia Ippel: Senior; Communication

Taylor Mitchell: Sophomore

Miranda Sawvel: Sophomore

Anna Sybenga: Sophomore

Lillian Cate: Freshman

Naomi Diekman: Freshman

Marie Gates: Freshman

Abigail Lewis: Freshman

Players Mentioned

Dylan Ballin
: Sophomore

Mary England
: Junior; Exercise Science

Olivia Ippel
: Senior; Communication

Taylor Mitchell
: Sophomore

Miranda Sawvel
: Sophomore

Anna Sybenga
: Sophomore

Lillian Cate
: Freshman

Naomi Diekman
: Freshman

Marie Gates
: Freshman

Abigail Lewis
: Freshman