DEKALB, Ill. – The Northern Illinois University women's cross country team heads east to Western New York this Saturday, Nov. 1, for the Mid-American Conference Cross Country Championship, hosted by Buffalo, on the Audubon Golf Course. The six-kilometer women's race is scheduled for 11 a.m. CT and a live stream will be available via YouTube. 

A youthful Huskie lineup will compete in the championship as NIU takes five freshmen, a sophomore and a junior transfer to compete in the conference meet. Grace Hanson (Kansas City, Kan./Piper) is the lone NIU runner to have competed in a collegiate conference meet, having run for Oklahoma at the 2023 Big 12 Championships

Last time out for the Huskies at the Bradley Pink Classic, all five runners competing ran personal best times, led by Amelie Ojeda (Lombard, Ill./Willowbrook) who recorded a top-40 finish with a time of 21:25.38. Ojeda has paced the Huskies in all four meets this fall. 

Ariel Hernandez (Rock Falls, Ill./Rock Falls), Claire Helmila (Greenville, Wis./Freedom), Varri Higgins (Bethesda, Md./Chevy Chase) and Liliana Camargo (Yorkville, Ill./Yorkville) also produced PRs on the Newman Golf Course two weeks ago. 

Isabella Grieder (Groveland, Ill./Morton) is also slated to compete for NIU this Saturday, she missed out on the Bradley Pink Classic but did compete in the Fighting Illini Open and Gans Creek Classic earlier this season. 

Toledo is the defending conference champion, having won last season's meet on the Ball State Cross Country Course in Muncie, Ind. The Rockets have won four consecutive league titles. 

Following the conference championship, the Huskies will head to Stillwater, Okla., for the NCAA Midwest Regional meet on Friday, Nov. 14, on the Greiner Family Oklahoma State Cross Country Course.