NORMAL, Ill. – Camille Jackson (Ames, Iowa/Ames) led a pair of top 30 finishers as the Northern Illinois University cross country team competed in the Redbird Invite, hosted by Illinois State, on Friday afternoon (Sept. 13) at the Weibring Golf Course. Jackson finished 26th while Bailey Wilk (Huntley, Ill./Huntley) was just two spots behind in 28th.

NIU finished eighth in the team standings, host Illinois State claimed the team title while Mattison Plummer of the Redbirds earned the individual crown in a time of 21:30.5.

"Some of our runners were faster through five kilometers in today's 6K race than a week ago (in a 5K race)," said NIU head coach Juan Carrillo. "That was a positive. Unfortunately, we had some people out with sickness, so we didn't have a lot of depth today. Some of our runners didn't have a good day and we didn't have enough people to make up for that. We just have to regroup, put in some good work the next two weeks and get ready for Notre Dame."

Jackson was the first Huskie to cross the line, running a time of 23:22.2 on the six-kilometer course. Wilk was just two seconds behind as she ran a time of 23:25.3. 

"Camille (Jackson) compared to last weekend, where she went out too hard and paid the price later in that race. Today, she was more relaxed and looked in control of her race and her effort," said Carrillo. "That was a good adjustment that she made. She's an experience runner, so she understands those adjustments."

The three remaining Huskies to score all finished just outside the top 50, led by Morgan Gioia (Park Ridge, Ill./Maine South) who claimed 51st in a time of 24:54.8. Olivia Southby (New South Wales, Australia/Therry Catholic) was 56th, running 25:24.6 while Rachel Dietrich (Neenah, Wis./Neenah) recorded a time of 25:40.5 to finish 59th.

NIU will return to action on Friday, Oct. 4, when the Huskies travel to South Bend, Ind., to compete in the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invite. 


Team Standings
1. Illinois State, 23
2. Northern Iowa, 44
3. UIC, 90
4. Western Illinois, 130
5. SIU Edwardsville, 132
6. Valparaiso, 188
7. Illinois Wesleyan, 188
8. NIU, 198
9. Heartland CC, 245
10. Missouri-St. Louis, 257

NIU Individuals
26. Camille Jackson, 23:22.2
28. Bailey Wilk, 23:25.3
51. Morgan Gioia, 24:54.8
56. Olivia Southby, 25:24.6
59. Rachel Dietrich, 25:40.5
70. Carly Leonard, 26:31.9