Illinois State XC Completes Sweep at Redbird Invitational
Written by Connor Allyn on September 20, 2026
Image courtesy of Illinois State Athletics
NORMAL, Ill. — Illinois State cross country wrapped up the Redbird invitational on Friday with both the mens and womens teams taking first place, while several recorded top finishes in their first races for Illinois State.
Both Redbird squads finished first in their respective fields, with the men’s team finishing with 19 points and the women’s team with 23 points. This was the third time in four years that both squads finished first at the event. It also marks the fourth consecutive year that the women’s team won the 6k event.
The men’s team dominated the individual events, with eight Redbirds finishing in the top 10 of the men’s 8k race. Junior Julian Barker led the squad to a victory for his first collegiate cross-country win finishing with a time of 24:36:5. Junior transfer Ethan Eichhorn finished his Redbird debut in third place with a time of 24:55:00.
Senior Cayde de Waal finished just behind Eichhorn in fourth place with a time of 24:55:7. Senior Blake Oleson rounded out the top five for the Redbirds with a time of 24:56.9.
The four Redbirds who placed consecutively from sixth through ninth were freshman Alex Rodriguez, junior Will Gelon, freshman Max Weber and senior transfer Karson Hollander.
Rodriguez finished sixth with a time of 24:57:7, while Gelon was right behind him with a time of 24:59.6 for seventh overall. Weber placed eighth with a time of 25:05.0, while Hollander finished ninth with a mark of 25:10.3 for his Redbird debut.
Sophomore Quinn Davis picked up his second top-20 finish of the season, placing 16th with a time of 25:41.8. To wrap up the Redbird men’s individual results, Senior Kane Shields finished 22nd with a time of 26:03.3.
The Redbird Women’s team held down the podium with three racers finishing in the top three and six out of ten racers finishing top 10. Building on her success from last season senior Nora Brady led the Redbirds with a first-place time of 21:16.7, earning her first cross-country victory with Illinois State.
Brady’s win marked the first time since the 2024 Redbird Invitational that two Redbirds individually won their respective races at the same meet, as Brady and Baker accomplished the feat.
Sophomore Pauline Schedler finished right behind Brady in second place with a time of 21:19.9, while junior Johanna Ebert placed third with a time of 21:25.3.
Junior Astrid Van Breedam finished eighth with a time of 21:46.0, followed by junior Becca Heitzig’s ninth-place performance with a time of 21:57.1. Senior Grace Erb closed out the top 10 with a time of 22:18.4. Sophomore Cameron Crump recorded an 18th-place time of 22:39.8.
Illinois State will travel to South Bend, Indiana, for the Joe Piane Invitational on Friday, Oct. 2, beginning at 9 a.m. CT.
For all things Illinois State Cross Country, stay tuned to WZND.com
