NOTRE DAME, Ind. - Saint Mary's College Cross Country announced their 2026 schedule on Wednesday. The Belles head into their 22nd year and 21st season under the direction of Head Coach Jackie Bauters.
Saint Mary's will open their campaign on September 1 as they head north for the Comet Invite hosted by the University of Olivet with a 6pm start. They then follow that up by taking on the Spartan Invite on September 11. The Spartan Invite will be hosted by Michigan State University and will be an early 9am start time.
The Belles continue their September slate on September 19 as they head to Wheaton, IL to take on the Gil Dodds Invitational, hosted by Wheaton College. The race will kick off at 10:45 am CST. They close out the month at the Bulldog Invite on September 26, hosted by Adrian College and will see a 9:30 am start time.
Saint Mary's will close out their regular season on October 17 as they head to the Oberlin Interregional in Oberlin, OH with a 10:30 am start time. The Belles kickoff postseason competition on October 31 at the MIAA Championships hosted by Albion College. They then continue postseason action on November 14 at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional hosted by Olivet.
The Belles return 11 runners from their 2025 campaign including five seniors in Cecilia Conrad (Norton Shores, MI), Josie DeWine (Yellow Springs, OH), Savannah Paulson (Carmel, IN), Anna Scannell (Cedar Falls, IA), and Jordan Siminski (Crown Point, IN). The five are joined by lone junior Allie Glendening (Berrien Springs, MI). They also return five sophomores in Jackie Clemente (Richmond, IN), Sarah Couri (Germantown Hills, IL), Greta Duke (Shelbyville, IL), Mary Caroline George (Louisville, KY), and Megan McClain (Chicago, IL).
Saint Mary's will also welcome eight first-year student-athletes to the program. This includes four Michiganders in Stella Behnan from Port Huron, Stella Lipinski from Lansing, Elsie Markillie from Richland, and Lizzy Salinas from Dearborn. They bring in two from the state of Illinois in Bridget Begley from Palos Heights and Monica Klockenkemper from Godfrey. The Belles will also bring in Ella Trenerry from Granger, IN and Addy Lulich from Canonsburgh, PA.
