DETROIT (10/28/2026) -- The University of Detroit Mercy women's cross country team will look to take the next step in what has been a highly successful season as the Titans challenge the conference in the Horizon League Championships on Saturday.
The women's 6k will start at 11:00 a.m., followed by the men's 8k at Noon at Youthtowne Fields in Clinton, Pennsylvania.
Tickets are $10 per vehicle.
Last year, UDM tallied 227 points for 10th place and had an All-League runner, with
Nina Pizzo earning 14th for Second Team honors.
Detroit Mercy has posted two wins, just the second time in school history the Titans have won two races in a year and the first since 1986, with a runner-up effort and a fifth-place finish in its four meets this season.
The Titans will have a mix of veterans and youth in the race, and the group has posted fast times and performances this year, with a few harriers putting their names in the Titan record book.
Senior
Alaina Burns has scored in every meet and lowered her 5k and 6k times this year, registering a career-best 18:26 for 10th at Canisius and 22:51 for seventh at Louisville. Senior
Helana Napiorkowski has scored in three of the four races, while senior
Abby Fifield has two 5k runs this year under 20.
The junior class has taken the big step this season, with all three tallying career 5k and 6k records. In her last event,
Kirsten Koss clocked 18:13 for seventh at Canisius - a top-20 time in school history - and ran 22:32 at Louisville for a silver effort, the 32nd-fastest 6k time in the Titan record book.
Sofia Figueroa's best 5k time was 18:30 for 11th in upstate New York, while
Ana Lopez lowered her 5k time to 18:44 and her 6k best to 23:49.
The underclassmen have also improved from last season and from the start of the year. Freshman
Anna Kujansuu scored in every race and broke the Titan 5k rookie record with a 17:59 third at Canisius, the 10th-best mark in school history. At the same time, sophomores
Alaa Selman and
Addie Stanley have both run under 20 in 5k events.
Detroit Mercy has won two championships, taking the crown in 1986 and 1987. UDM also has 24 top-five finishes, including two runner-up marks and nine third-place efforts.
The Titans have had an All-Horizon League performer in 12 of the last 14 seasons. Three harriers have won individual championships in Bonnie Fitzpatrick '88 in 1987, Angie Lefere '01 in 1997, and Kim Hemstreet '02 in 2002. Nancy Mandziara '88 was runner-up twice in 1986 and 1987, while Allison Sherman '22 collected silver in 2022.
Fitzpatrick, Lefere, and Sherman are also the only Titans in school history to have earned All-League honors four times.
