Women's Cross Country | 11/1/2025 9:45:00 PM

MEADVILLE, Pa. (pacathletics.org) - For the first time in the 42 years of the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Women's Cross Country Championships, there was a tie for first place, as Geneva College and Washington & Jefferson College both scored 59 team points to finish as co-champions. It is the first PAC title in the sport for both programs.

Both Geneva and W&J had three runners earn First Team All-PAC to highlight their tie with 59 points, which placed them ahead of third-place Franciscan University, who scored 77, and Saint Vincent College, who totaled 85 points to take fourth place.

The host school and defending champion Allegheny College was next in fifth place with 141 points, just in front of Grove City College in sixth (148). Next in seventh place was Waynesburg University (179), followed by Hiram College in eighth (195), Westminster College in ninth (239) and Chatham University (253). Bethany College and Thiel College competed as individuals.

The top seven finishers in both the men's and women's races received All-PAC First Team recognition, while runners finishing eighth through 14th earned All-PAC Second Team honors. Runners finishing 15th through 21st received All-PAC Honorable Mention recognition. 

Sparking Geneva to the share of the team title was Carmen Medvit, as the senior became the first GT runner to take first place at the Championship meet. It was Medvit's second win on the Allegheny course this fall, as she also won the Allegheny Classic back on Sept. 20th, but her Championship time of 22:32.40 was more than 45 seconds faster than her winning time in September.

Medvit was recognized as the PAC champion, but starting this year, the conference's Runner of the Year will be determined by a vote from the PAC coaches following the NCAA Championships.
 
Taking second place on Saturday was Saint Vincent sophomore Grace Neubert, who was the lone runner not from Geneva or W&J in the top seven. Neubert, who placed third a year ago at Championships, moved up one spot this year by crossing in 22:37.10. 
 
Geneva senior Hailey Carroll, whose previous top finish was third at the 2023 PAC Championships, matched that showing by earning third again on Saturday in 22:40.60. The third Golden Tornado to finish with First Team All-PAC accolades was sophomore Audrey McAlister, who took seventh place overall (24:21.80).

W&J's share of the championship was highlighted by a pack of Presidents finishing fourth through sixth. The initial W&J runner to come across was senior Claire Anderson in fourth place. The PAC champion in 2023 and runner-up a season ago, Anderson made it three consecutive First Team all-conference performances when she completed the course in 23:06.40

Anderson was followed by Maria Gilles in fifth place (24:09.30) and senior Chloe LoCastro in sixth (24:21.0). It was the third all-conference honor for Gilles and initial First Team award, while for LoCastro, this was the first All-PAC laurel of her career. 

Leading the Second Team All-PAC runners was Franciscan freshman Mary Worden. Her time of 24:31.0 was good for eighth place and also earned her PAC Newcomer of the Year as the top first-year runner to finish. Worden is the second Franciscan runner in the last three years to be recognized, joining Lauren Dosch, who was the top newcomer in 2023. 

After leading the Presidents to the first conference championship in women's cross country, W&J head coach Andy Upton was selected as the PAC Coach of the Year, his first cross country coaching recognition.

The PAC also released its 2025 PAC Sportsmanship Team Saturday. The PAC Sportsmanship Teams were established to recognize student-athletes who have distinguished themselves through demonstrated acts of sportsmanship and ethical behavior and are an ongoing effort to recognize and encourage positive sportsmanship among all PAC teams.

The Division III regional championships are scheduled for Saturday, November 15th. Bethany, Chatham, Geneva, Grove City, Saint Vincent, Thiel, W&J, Waynesburg and Westminster will compete in the Mid-Atlantic region, while Allegheny, Franciscan and Hiram will compete in the Great Lakes region. The Division III Mid-Atlantic Championships will be hosted by Dickinson College in Newville, Pa., while the Division III Great Lakes Championships will be held in Louisville, Kentucky at E.P. Sawyer State Park. 

The 2025 Division III Championships are scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 22nd and hosted by Converse University and OneSpartanburg, Inc., in Spartanburg, S.C.  

   

First Team All-PAC
Name	School	Place	Year	Hometown/High School
Carmen Medvit	Geneva	1st	Sr.	New Castle, Pa./Shenango
Grace Neubert	Saint Vincent	2nd	So.	Saint Marys, Pa./Elk County Catholic
Hailey Carroll	Geneva	3rd	Sr.	Bremerton, Wash./Central Kitsap
Claire Anderson	W&J	4th	Sr.	Jamestown, Pa./Jamestown
Maria Gilles	W&J	5th	Sr.	North Ridgeville, Ohio/Lake Ridge Academy
Chloe LoCastro	W&J	6th	Sr.	Venetia, Pa./Peters Township
Audrey McAlister	Geneva	7th	So.	Ellwood City, Pa./Homeschool