JOPLIN, Mo. — The Pittsburg State University women's cross country team qualified for the 2025 NCAA Division II National Championships Saturday (Nov. 8).

The Pitt State women compiled 113 points to finish second in the team standings.
 
Winona State University secured the regional crown with a low score of 72 points to best the Gorillas and the remainder of the 32-team field. The University of Nebraska-Kearney placed third with 116 points. The top three teams secured automatic qualifying berths to D2 nationals.

Junior Paige Mullen paced the Pitt State women in their six-kilometer race in the NCAA-II Central Regional with a second-place finish in 20 minutes, 42.64 seconds. Redshirt junior Hannah Gibson finished fourth (21:00.81) and sophomore Lorna Rae Pierce placed sixth overall (21:11.78). All three runners garnered All-Region honors with their finishes.

Redshirt junior Kaci Singer (44^th, 22:15.80) and redshirt sophomore Phoebe Fletcher (57^th, 22:27.38) rounded out Pitt State's five scored positions.

Fort Hays State University's Emily McCullough won the race in 20:32.59.
 
Pitt State will make its seventh trip to the national championships in eight seasons (2017-19, '22-25) – the 2020 campaign was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic – and the program's 17^th all-time berth in the D2 Championships.
 
The 2025 NCAA Division II National Championships will be held Nov. 22 at Wayne E. Dannehl Cross Country Course at Kenosha, Wis.