Women's Cross Country | 9/4/2026 9:15:00 AM
A young Gannon women's cross country team gained valuable experience a season ago, and with its entire top seven returning, the Golden Knights enter the 2026 season looking to take another step forward.
Gannon was picked ninth in the 2026 PSAC Women's Cross Country Preseason Coaches Poll after finishing ninth at last year's conference championship. The Golden Knights' top seven in 2025 featured four freshmen and two sophomores, leaving plenty of room for growth entering the new season.
Bowers Back After Championship Season
The Golden Knights return one of the top runners in the Atlantic Region in Emily Bowers (Silver Creek, N.Y./Silver Creek), who enjoyed a breakthrough 2025 season.
Bowers captured the individual title at the 2025 PSAC Championships before finishing second at the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional. She headlines a Gannon lineup that returns every member of last season's top seven.
After Bowers showed the ability to compete at the front of the conference and region last season, Gannon will look for additional runners to make similar strides in 2026.
Abbett, Ickes Give Gannon Proven Depth
Behind Bowers, Alexis Abbett (Aspinwall, Pa./Aquinas Academy) and Megan Ickes (Greenville, Pa./Greenville) return after each putting together strong postseason performances.
Abbett finished 37th at the PSAC Championships before moving up to 17th at the Atlantic Regional. Ickes followed closely behind, placing 39th at PSACs and 34th at the regional meet.
The Golden Knights also welcome back Anna Rakvic (North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin) and Makayla McLister (Butler, Pa./Butler Area). Rakvic finished 91st at the PSAC Championships and 121st at the Atlantic Regional, while McLister placed 93rd and 123rd, respectively.
With another year of collegiate experience throughout the lineup, Gannon will look for its returning group to close the gap between Bowers and the rest of the scoring pack.
Entire Top Seven Returns
Continuity could be one of Gannon's biggest strengths in 2026.
The Golden Knights did not lose anyone from their 2025 top seven, a group that was overwhelmingly made up of underclassmen. Four of those runners were freshmen last season and two were sophomores.
That experience gives Gannon an opportunity to build on last year's ninth-place PSAC finish rather than having to replace significant production.
Holody Joins the Mix
Gannon also adds newcomer Josephine Holody () to an already deep returning group.
Holody arrives with a cross country 5K time of 19:24 and a 3,200-meter mark of 11:41. She will look to compete for a place among a lineup that returns all seven of its top runners from last season.
Golden Knights Look to Move Up
The Golden Knights were selected ninth in the PSAC preseason poll, the same position they finished in at the 2025 conference championship.
With Bowers returning as the defending PSAC champion and one of the region's top runners, along with a young supporting cast that gained valuable experience last season, Gannon enters 2026 with expectations of improving on that finish if the group can remain healthy.
East Stroudsburg was picked as the conference favorite with 12 first-place votes, followed by Edinboro, Bloomsburg and West Chester.
