Saturday, Nov. 22 | 2025 NCAA DII National Championships
Women 6K – 10 a.m. CT
Men 10K – 11:15 a.m. CT
Kenosha, Wis. | Wayne E Dannehl National Cross Country Course
WATCH | LIVE RESULTS | MEET INFORMATION
 
The No. 9 Northwest Missouri State University men's cross-country team is preparing to take on the 2025 NCAA DII National Championship on Saturday, Nov. 22 at the Wayne E Dannehl National Cross Country Course in Kenosha, Wis. University of Wisconsin – Parkside will serve as host.
 
Along with the men will be sophomore Olivia Bakker who earned an at-large bid to compete as an individual in the women's race.
 
The Bearcats have had another historic season after securing back-to-back MIAA championships, and most recently earned the regional crown. At the Central Region Championship, senior Aziz Mohammed led the way, finishing first overall, and secured the second-fastest 10K in program history. Mohammed was selected as a part of the 2025 NCAA DII XC Regional Awards as the Central Region men's athlete of the year.
 
Senior Drew Atkins finished second for the Bearcats and earned the fourth-best time in school history. Rounding out the top five for the 'Cats were Maxime Touron, Grayson Tapp and Barnabe Gabillet, finishing 19th, 20th and 29th.
 
Mohammed, Atkins, Touron and Tapp were all recognized with USTFCCCA All-Region accolades posting top 25 individual performances at the Central Region Championships.
 
In Flotrack's most recent College XC Rankings Presented By HOKA, Mohammed is ranked 15th and Atkins is ranked 16th in the country among DII individual competitors.
 
For the women, Bakker most recently secured fifth at the Central Region Championships, giving her the second-best 6,000-meter in Northwest history. Bakker has led the Bearcats this season as the team's top finisher in four meets and has set a new personal record every race. Bakker was recognized as a USTFCCCA All-Region honoree for her performance at the Central Region Championships.
 
NCAA Div. II National Championships Meet Information: 
The meet will be held at the Wayne E Dannehl National Cross Country Course in Kenosha, Wis., with the women's 10K race beginning at 10 a.m., followed by the men's 6K at 11:15 a.m.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Last season, the Bearcat men placed 10th overall with returning runners Atkins having placed 19th and Blay finishing 167th. With his performance last year Atkins earned his second career all-America award.
 
Northwest Men's NCAA Finishes:
1968 - 18th 
1972 - 12th
1973 - 14th 
1974 - 22nd
1976 - 27th
1978 - 16th
1979 - 20th
1984 - 16th 
1997 - 13th
1998 - 13th 
2016 - 19th 
2019 - 5th
2023 - 24th 
2024 - 10th
 
Northwest Women's NCAA Finishes:
1996 - 10th 
1997 - 5th
2022 - 24th 


Northwest XC Men's All-Americans:
1974 - John Wellerding
1975 - John Wellerding
1978 - Vernon Darling
1997 - Robby Lane
2018 - Karim Achengli
2019 - Karim Achengli, Jhordan Ccope
2023 - Drew Atkins
2024 - Drew Atkins, Grant Bradley, Nate Mueller
 
Northwest XC Women's All-Americans:
1997 - Lindsey Borgstadt, Kathy Kearns
2022 - Amber Owens
 
The Northwest Missouri State University men's and women's cross-country teams are under the direction of Coach Wick Cunningham, who is leading the team for the fifth season. Cunningham was recently named the MIAA Men's Cross Country Coach of the Year and the USTFCCCA Central Region Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season.


Heading into the final week of competition, the Bearcat men sit at No. 9 in the USTFCCCA NCAA Division II men's cross country national coaches' poll. 
 
USTFCCCA Men's Cross Country National Coaches' Poll (Nov. 12)
1. Wingate
2. Adams State
3. Colorado School of Mines
4. Grand Valley State
5. Lee (Tenn.)
6. Western Colorado
7. Saginaw Valley State
8. Colorado Christian
9. Northwest Missouri State
10. West Texas A&M
11. Chico State
12. Western Washington
13. Washburn
14. UC-Colorado Springs
15. Cal Poly Pomona
16. Florida Southern
17. East Central (Okla.)
18. Lewis
19. Pittsburg State
20. Alaska Anchorage
21. Anderson (S.C.)
22. Embry-Riddle (Fla.)
23. Northwest Nazarene
24. MSU Denver
25. Alabama-Huntsville
26. Tiffin
27. Shippensburg
27. Augustana (S.D.)
29. Charleston (W.Va.)
30. Fort Lewis
 
Ahead of the 2025 NCAA DII Cross Country Championship, FloTrack has released an edition of its College XC Rankings presented by HOKA. This ranking set is a national meet projection, featuring all teams and individuals who have qualified for the NCAA Championship. 
 
The Bearcats were recognized as the 13th-best team across Division II. 
 
FloTrack DII Men's Team Cross Country National Rankings (Nov. 18)
1. Adams State
2. Colo. School of Mines
3. Grand Valley State
4. Wingate
5. Saginaw Valley
6. Chico State
7. Western Colorado
8. Lee
9. Western Washington
10. Colo. Christian
11. UC–Colorado Springs
12. Lewis
13. Northwest Missouri State
14. West Texas A&M
15. East Central
16. Pittsburg State
17. Washburn
18. Cal Poly Pomona
19. Alaska Anchorage
20. NW Nazarene
21. Anderson (SC)
22. Florida Southern
23. Shippensburg
24. Oklahoma Baptist
25. Southern Conn.
26. Nebraska–Kearney
27. Alabama–Huntsville
28. Augustana (SD)
29. Charleston
30. Davis & Elkins
31. Flagler
32. Embry-Riddle
33. Roberts Wesleyan
34. Franklin Pierce
 
Northwest runners Mohammed and Atkins are ranked No. 15 and No. 16 respectively for Flotracks Division II individual men's cross country national rankings.
 
FloTrack Individual DII Men's Cross Country National Rankings – Top 25 (Nov. 18)
1. Ramon Rodriguez — Tiffin
2. Kidus Begashaw — Adams State
3. Paul Knight — School of Mines
4. Matthew Storer — Colo. Christian
5. Koby Fraaza — Grand Valley State
6. Evan Horgan — Lewis
7. Antonin Saint-Peyre — Wingate
8. Ian Rono — Texas A&M International
9. Adrian Legarreta — West Texas A&M
10. Mario Giannini — Chico State
11. Joaquin Campos — Wingate
12. Louis Ginane — Tiffin
13. Jeremiah Vaille — School of Mines
14. Ahmed Ibrahim — Alabama Huntsville
15. Aziz Mohammed — Northwest Missouri State
16. Drew Atkins — Northwest Missouri State
17. Donald Kibet — Washburn
18. Weldon Chebon — New Mexico Highlands
19. Julian Campos — Adams State
20. Ethan Grolnic — School of Mines
21. Jan Thewes — Western Colorado
22. Melt von Molendorff — Biola
23. Luca Poppe — Wingate
24. Christian Giller — Florida Southern
25. Oliver Diaz — Western Colorado