INDIANAPOLIS — Washington and Lee University's men's and women's cross country teams have both earned bids to the 2025 NCAA Division III Championships, marking the second consecutive year—and only the second time in program history—that both squads will race on the national stage.

The championships will be held Saturday, November 22, at the Roger Milliken Cross Country Course at the Roger Milliken Center in Spartanburg, South Carolina. The men's race begins at 10 a.m. Eastern, followed by the women's race at 11 a.m. Eastern. Live coverage will stream on NCAA.com from 10 a.m. through the awards ceremony.

Path to Qualification

W&L Women's Team

The No. 14 Washington and Lee women's cross country team earned an at-large selection to the 2025 NCAA Championships following a dominant runner-up performance at the NCAA South Regional Championship on Saturday in Salem, Va. This marks the third NCAA appearance in program history and the second in as many seasons.

W&L scored 67 points, finishing behind nationally-ranked Emory (42). Junior Olivia Warr captured her second consecutive South Region individual title, winning the 6K in 21:00.7 and becoming the first woman in W&L history to repeat as regional champion. Junior Lydia Harvey placed second in 21:36.4, giving the Generals a 1–2 sweep for the second straight meet and extending a postseason surge that included back-to-back top finishes at the ODAC Championships.

For the second season in a row, all seven W&L runners earned All-Region honors—Warr, Harvey, Reese Brown (18th), Josie Engle (19th), Eve Spencer (27th), Maddy Morgan (29th), and Adelaide Ellis (34th). The Generals recorded a 22:12 top-five average and a 2:03 scoring spread, mirroring the depth and pack-running that carried the team to its best-ever NCAA finish last fall.

At the 2024 NCAA Championships, W&L placed eighth, the highest team finish in program history. Warr earned All-America honors with a ninth-place finish (21:13.5), the second-best individual performance ever by a General. The returning core from that top-10 national lineup positions W&L as a significant contender entering the 2025 championship field.

2025 Regional Championship Release | 2024 National Championship Release | Women's Program Championship History | Women's Program Individual Qualifiers

W&L Men's Team

The No. 19 Washington and Lee men's cross country team earned one of the NCAA's automatic bids after winning the 2025 NCAA South Regional Championship—the program's second regional title all-time and first since 1995.

W&L scored 39 points with a historic performance that saw five runners place inside the top 15 and six inside the top 35, tying the program's single-meet All-Region record. Junior Robert Cooper led the Generals with a third-place finish in 24:33.3, the team's best regional result since 2016. Senior Keaton Rush (4th, 24:34.8) and sophomore Sam Daunt (5th, 24:35.6) delivered a sweep of places 3–5 that separated W&L from the field early.

Sophomore William Dunaway (12th) and junior Thomas Franklin (15th) closed out the scoring five with a 38-second spread, the tightest front-pack compression in the region. Junior Jackson Kodenski (21st) and sophomore Raja Mehendale (49th) completed the lineup, with six Generals earning All-Region recognition.

The regional title returns W&L to the NCAA Championships for the sixth time in program history and the third straight season. W&L placed 21st at the 2024 NCAA Championships, the best finish in the modern expanded field, led by Cooper's 51st-place run (24:53.0). 

2025 Regional Championship Release | 2024 National Championship Release | Men's Program Championship History | Men's Program Individual Qualifiers

Championship Information

• Location: Roger Milliken Cross Country Course, Spartanburg, S.C.
  Date: Saturday, November 22
  Race Times: Men – 10 a.m. EST | Women – 11 a.m. EST
• Broadcast: Live coverage of the event will be available on NCAA.com, beginning at 11 a.m. EST and continuing through the awards ceremony.

South Region VII Individual Qualifiers

Women

• Delaney Bundy — Meredith
• Anna Cantrell — Rhodes
• Elena Gentry — Rhodes
• Lily Hoffman — Mary Washington
• Laurel McMahon — Catholic
• Bayleigh Redd-Armstrong — Southern Virginia
• Olivia Sobkowicz — Catholic

Men

• Zachary Benner — Oglethorpe
• Jorge Clemente-Garcia — Pfeiffer
• Ashton Deriso — Oglethorpe
• Sawyer Helms — Pfeiffer
• Cannon Powell — Pfeiffer
• John Urciuoli — Emory
• Ryan Van de Berghe — Emory

A full preview for both the men's and women's championship events will be released on Generalssports.com on Thursday afternoon.  

Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.