Westminster Women's Cross Country

Westminster women's cross country competes in the RMAC under Janelle Branch, head coach of the men's and women's cross country and track and field programs. The official 2026 roster lists seven runners, two of them from Utah: freshmen Kaja Wilcox of Salt Lake City and Rowen McLaughlin of North Salt Lake.

The home meet

Westminster hosted teams from Utah, Colorado and Idaho for 5K races at Sugar House Park on September 10. Junior Eileen O'Connor was the Griffins' first finisher, 12th in 19:39.42. Sophomore Sonya Brunner was 14th in 20:02.22, and Wilcox was 17th in 20:19.37, according to the official recap. Six days earlier, Wilcox led the Griffins at the 3-mile Utah Valley Invitational, finishing 40th in 19:06.04.

The road to November

As of September 22, the schedule has the Griffins at the Charles Bowles Invitational in Salem, Oregon, on October 3 and the Dr. Thad Scholes XC Invitational in Twin Falls, Idaho, on October 9, before returning to Sugar House Park for the Utah Open on October 15. The RMAC Championship is November 7 in Rapid City, South Dakota. The NCAA Division II Championships are November 21 in Lubbock, Texas.

The coach

Branch was one of three event managers on Team USATF's staff at the 2026 World Athletics U20 Championships in Eugene, Oregon, in August, and chairs USA Track & Field's Athletes' Commission. Her path from the U.S. Navy to Westminster is covered in a separate story.