(November 8, 2025) Fort Dodge, Iowa - After a season started out with five ladies, three made the trip to Lakeside Golf Course this week for the 2025 NJCAA DII National Championship. The 5K race is hosted by Iowa Central Community College. It has been since the first year of Bucks Cross Country in 2018 that the race was held in Fort Dodge.

The DII Women's race was the last of six races on the course that had been hit by a snow storm. The course was icy, packed down, muddy in areas, and had tough conditions for the ladies to compete in. There were 321 ladies in the race. 

Sophomore Darcy Vineyard (Claremore, OK) was in a battle on the day, but she would finish 14th overall with a time of 19:45.0. The finish was good enough to be named as 2025 NJCAA DII Women's Cross Country Second Team All-American. The top 15 finish also meant that she never finished below the top 15 in every race that she competed in during the 2025 season. She finishes her cross country career for the Bucks as the back-to-back Region 2 Champion and as a 2-time NJCAA All-American. This first to ever do both in school history. 

Freshmen Ellie Taylor (Atkins, AR) ran a solid race on the day with a 22:17.9 that was good enough for 117th overall. Her freshmen counterpart Katelynn Foster (Mena, AR) finish 259th with a time of 25:31.8. 

Complete race results and time can be found at https://results.wayzatatiming.com/meets/58391/events/xc/2153079. 

The race puts a wrap on the 2025 season for Bucks Cross Country. The ladies will take some time off for the holidays before returning to campus to get ready for the 2026 season of Track at UARM.

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