Youthtowne, PA. – Some of the best teams from across all three levels of the NCAA came together Saturday for the Carnegie Mellon Invitational. The Wheeling University Women's Cross Country team was one of six Mountain East Conference (MEC) teams in attendance as the Cardinals finished 16th overall at the event. They placed one runner in the top 60 Aunt staked their claim to the cross-country record books in their final tune-up.
That top 60 runner would be Junior Madison Conrad, who would finish 55th overall in the field. It would be Wheeling's second 5K the season, Conrad would run a time of 18:59.30. she was able to shave just over a minute of her time from the first 5K first of the season, running a mild case of just over 6 minutes. Among the MEC competition in the field, Conrad would finish just inside the top 20, taking 18th overall. Conrad has been the team's top runner throughout the 2025 season as she set a new season best for the second week in a row. She has picked up top 10 finishes at each of theast two events and has played a big role in the growth of this young team. She was also able to put her name in the record books, running the 6th fastest 5K time in program history in the effort. With the MEC Championships now looming just two weeks away, she is looking to use her momentum to get into the conversation among the top MEC runners in the field.
Finishing behind her was senior Gabby Baiano, who would place 113th in the field with a time of 20:10.20. Like Conrad, Baiano would also shave time off her season opening 5K performance, coming within 10 seconds of breaking the 20-minute mark. Baiano will be the only runner this season who has experience at the MEC Cross Country Championships and will look to lead this team into this season's championship event. Rounding out the Cardinal top three was Luci Banks, who finished 143rd with a time of 21:11.80. it would go down as a new 5K PR for the freshman, knocking over a minute off of her 5K time from the season opening event. The Cardinal top three have all been strong this season and look to be a three-headed monster heading towards the conference championships.
Rounding out the field for the Cardinals was Jezabella Cohen and Autumn Kerchner. Cohen would finish 179gj in the field, running a time of 25:51.80 to round out her regular season effort. It was the second PR of the day for the Cardinals, and the biggest, as she took almost four minutes off her first 5K run. Rounding out the field was Kerchner, who made her cross country debut with a time of 32:15.80.
The Wheeling University Women's Cross Country Team returns to action on Saturday, October 25th, when they run in the 2025 MEC Cross Country Championships at 11 AM.
