COLUMBIA, Missouri -- McKenna Palmer led the way one final time for the Indiana Tech cross country team, completing the NAIA Championships as the team's top finisher on Friday morning at Gans Creek XC Course in Columbia, Missouri.  In a field featuring the top NAIA runners in the nation, Palmer finished a very strong 87th at out 326 runners.

Palmer's race put a ribbon on a three-year cross country career at Indiana Tech that featured appearances at the NAIA Championship meet each season.  She finished 222nd as a sophomore and 117th as a junior.  Her time over the 6K course (22:37.1) was just nine seconds off the PR she set earlier this season.

Sarah Koker made her debut at the national championships with a 190th place finish in 23:33.9.  She was the first Indiana Tech freshman to earn an at-large bid to nationals.

Juan Caballero was the Warriors' lone male representative, finishing 179th in 25:38.8.  It was the fastest 8K time by an Indiana Tech runner at the national meet since Jake Willison in 2019.

The Warriors will now turn their sights to the indoor track and field season which starts December 6th with the Warrior Open at Indiana Tech.