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BYU Women Hand NC State First Loss Since 2024 Without Hedengren, Syracuse Men Win Pre-Nationals

BYU Women Hand NC State First Loss Since 2024 Without Hedengren, Syracuse Men Win Pre-Nationals

The 2026 Under Armour Pre-National Invitational gave us a show on a chilly, overcast day in Terre Haute, with the BYU women and Syracuse men winning big.

Oct 16, 2026 by Maxx Bradley
BYU Women Hand NC State First Loss Since 2024 Without Hedengren, Syracuse Men Win Pre-Nationals

The 2026 Under Armour Pre-National Invitational lived up to the hype on both sides despite some big names not toeing the line in Terre Haute, Indiana. 

A highly-anticipated clash between the top-two ranked programs in the nation, NC State and BYU, culminated with a statement-making win, while a podium team from last November looks lethal after picking up a huge win.

The 2026 NCAA National Championships are just five weeks away, and if today was even remotely a glimpse of what to expect, fans are in for a treat on November 21.

Taylor Rohatinsky Leads BYU To Narrow Win Over Defending Champs NC State

Less than 24 hours before the gun was set to go off at Pre-Nationals in Terre Haute, it was reported that BYU’s frontrunning NCAA record holder, Jane Hedengren, would not be stepping up to the line due to illness. While many speculated that her absence would lead to a comfortable win for the top-ranked NC State Wolfpack, Diljeet Taylor had a card in her hand that she hadn’t shown yet this fall: Taylor Rohatinsky.

Behind the senior, the Cougars edged the Wolfpack 84-88, with both programs comfortably ahead of No. 12 Notre Dame, No. 19 Clemson, and No. 20 North Carolina, who followed with 213, 229, and 249 points, respectively.

Rohatinsky stepped up to the plate when BYU needed her most, leading the team with a ninth-place finish and the second-fastest 6k time of her career, 19:33.1. Her six teammates all found their way inside the top 30 on a chilly day in Terre Haute, with Taylor Lovell, Lexi Goff-Thompson, and Karrie Baloga finishing 14th, 18th, and 20th in 19:42.7, 19:50.6, and 19:53.7, respectively.

Jenna Hutchins (19:57.3), Zariel Macchia (19:58.0), and Nelah Roberts (20:00.3) capped the BYU top seven as the trio came across the line in 23rd, 24th, and 27th.

Thanks in part to their 27-second spread and a team average of 19:47 for 6k, last year’s national runners-up were simply too much for the Wolfpack to overcome.

Despite their first loss on the grass in nearly two years, the Wolfpack are still the team to beat and have the championships to back up that claim.

Senior Hannah Gapes led the defending champs with an 18:57.6, the fastest women’s 6k ever run on the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course, shattering the record of 19:14.0 set less than a month ago by Eastern Kentucky’s Brighter Jepchumba.

Gapes traversed the 6k course all by her lonesome, pulling away from the field to stop the clock 18 seconds before the chase pack rolled in. Bethany Michalak and Angelina Napoleon ran their way to strong finishes, with the duo clocking 19:29.9 and 19:41.0 to place eighth and 13th overall.

Emily Wisniewski and Brooke Rauber filled out the top five in 32nd and 34th, running 20:06.1 and 20:08.0, with the former nearly dipping under 20:00 in her first-ever 6k.

Keep in mind that although BYU was without Hedengren this time around, Laurie Henes’ squad was without Grace Hartman and Sadie Engelhardt, who have yet to make their 2026 debuts after finishing sixth and 51st at last year’s NCAA Championships. At this point, it’s unclear whether either is dealing with a setback heading into the postseason, but with Hedengren likely back for BYU and the Wolfpack potentially adding two proven championship scorers, both teams should bring even more firepower the next time they meet.

Behind Gapes, Auburn’s Faith Chelangat was runner-up in 19:15.5, joined under 19:20 by Kentucky’s Anna Lemirisho (19:16.8), Clemson’s Silvia Jelego (19:18.5), and Arizona’s Mercy Chepkemoi (19:19.1).

Indiana’s star freshman Katy Zang added another impressive performance to her growing list, finishing sixth in 19:20.7.

Syracuse Men Paint Terre Haute Orange, Roll to Pre-Nats Win

Less than a year removed from a podium finish at Gans Creek, No. 12 Syracuse came out on top of a 44-team field, winning 115-127-148 over No. 18 Villanova and No. 11 Notre Dame.

Both the Wildcats and the Irish had their top runner ahead of Syracuse’s No. 1, but Connor Ackley, Benne Anderson, Ben Gabelman, and Louis Small packed up to finish 15th, 16th, 18th, and 22nd. Ackley was the first to the line in 23:30.5, and his three teammates followed in 23:32.3, 23:34.3, and 23:39.9 as the Orange flexed a nine-second spread across their top four.

Sophomore Connell Alford finished 44th in 23:57.1 to close out the scoring for Brian Bell, but considering his lifetime best is a 23:33.6 from the Princeton Meadows Classic last month, it won’t be a surprise if Syracuse posts a 10-second spread from one through five on this same course next month.

Villanova was led by Bailey Habler for the second consecutive meet, with the junior running 23:23.4 en route to a sixth-place finish.

Charlie Moore, Thomas McMahon, and Jack Fenlon practically finished side by side, running 23:42.6, 23:42.9, and 23:46.3 to place 25th, 26th, and 28th, while Jack Coomber closed out the scoring for the Wildcats in 42nd with a 23:52.8.

Exactly two weeks removed from his big win at the Joe Piane Invitational, Notre Dame’s Daelen Ackley was the fourth man across the line in 23:20.5. Cameron Todd finished 14th in 23:28.0, while Drew Griffith, Kevin Sanchez, and Noah Bontrager took 39th, 43rd, and 48th to put all five Irish scorers inside the top 50.

One of the biggest surprises of the weekend was a sleeper team out of the Midwest Region, the Wichita State Shockers. The men in black and gold were led by Elkana Kipruto and Nicholas Kipchirchir, who ran 23:18.8 and 23:19.8 to finish second and third, leading the Shockers to a fourth-place team finish.

Narrowly taking the win ahead of the duo was Tulane’s Silas Kiptanui, who ran 23:17.4 for his second win of the season and the biggest of his career. Teammate Bernard Cheruiyot was seventh in 23:24.9 as the Green Wave finished 11th as a team.

Kentucky’s Edward Bird capped the top five in 23:21.0, while Pedro Marin (California Baptist), Joad Martinho (Toledo), and Pierre Attiogbe (Cornell) rounded out the top 10 in 23:25.0, 23:25.6, and 23:25.9.

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