The Stillwater morning was calm until Northwestern toed the line. When the shot went off, there were no tumbleweeds or hesitation, just a full-throttle Wildcat stampede.

On Aug. 29, Northwestern cross country opened its season with the Cowboy Preview, hosted at Oklahoma State. It was all smooth sailing for the ‘Cats, who finished in first place out of five teams.

Redshirt sophomore and 2024 USTFCCCA All-Region honoree Ava Criniti led the charge for Northwestern, posting a time of 10:13.1 to secure her first collegiate win. Close behind were graduate students Ava Earl, who also earned USTFCCCA All-Region honors last season, and Anna Hightower, placing second and third with times of 10:15.5 and 10:17.1, respectively.

The final two scoring spots went to redshirt junior Skye Ellis, who clocked in at fourth with a time of 10:21.1, and graduate student Holly Smith, finishing close behind at fifth with a 10:25.4.

Northwestern’s top-five sweep of the podium gave it a score of 15, besting second-place No. 14 Oklahoma State — which garnered 41 points — by 26. Oklahoma and Tulsa finished in third and fourth place with scores of 92 and 101 points, respectively.

The three remaining Wildcat runners also made their mark. Junior Jackie Holman, after pulling 0.2 seconds ahead of Oklahoma St. Junior Maddi Surber, fought her way to 11th with a time of 10:36.3. Freshman Cary Drake fell 0.3 seconds behind Surber and .5 seconds behind Holman, placing 13th with a 10:36.8 finish in her Northwestern debut. Senior Mia Mraz rounded it out for the Wildcats, running an 11:27.3 to finish in 39th place.

With an exceptional victory now under its belt, Northwestern now looks to dazzle in the Big Ten Preview on Friday, Sept. 12, in East Lansing, Michigan.