Queen's Cross Country opened its 2026 season with two perfect team scores and two individual champions at the Ronald C. Hoffmann Invitational on the weekend.

Both teams placed runners in the top five to earn the lowest possible team score of 15 points. The men's team claimed the team title for a record third consecutive year, while the women's team has now won two of the last three editions.

The defending OUA champion women's team was led by fourth-year student-athlete Olivia Baggley (Arts & Science), who ran away from the field to win by nearly 30 seconds. She was followed by Queen's 1,000m school record holder Elizabeth Vroom (Engineering), along with a group of young Gaels that included third-year Nari Hwang (Arts & Science) and first-year student-athletes Heidi Nuyens (Arts & Science) and Sabine Cornell (Arts & Science).

Other strong performances came from second-year Tessa Knight, who finished seventh, along with veterans Hilary Johnson (Arts & Science) (eighth) and Caleigh Pribaz (Kinesiology) (10th). In total, Queen's placed an impressive 11 athletes in the top 15.

The two-time defending U SPORTS champions' men's team looks once again to be a major contender on the U SPORTS stage come November. The Gaels were without two of their top returning athletes from last year's team, Angus Skinner (Education) and Peter Neill (Applied Science), but were led by emerging U SPORTS star Saul Taler (Kinesiology).

Taler, who represented Canada at last year's World Cross Country Championships and redshirted the 2025 season, became the first male athlete to win the individual title in a Queen's uniform.

Owen Danby (Arts & Science) led the next four collegiate finishers, followed by Tanner Hueglin (Arts & Science), Andrew Neill (Smith School of Business) and first-year standout Tyler Kuzminski (Arts & Science). Emile Zanuttini (Arts & Science) rounded out the top 10, while another first-year athlete, Charlie Mortimer (Arts & Science), finished close behind in 11th.

Women's 

1             Olivia Baggley 22:04.8
2             Elizabeth Vroom 22:31.8
3             Nari Hwang 22:52.2
4             Heidi Nuyens 23:02.9
5             Sabine Cornell 23:05.7
7             Tessa Knight 23:13.0
8             Hilary Johnson 23:17.8
10          Caleigh Pribaz 23:33.6
11          Leah Richter 23:36.2
13          Molly Kenealy 23:53.4
15          Daria Klufus 24:02.3
16          Helena Roth 24:05.8
17          Maeve Treleaven 24.06.6
31          Mary Neill 25:54.9
 
Men's

1             Saul Taler 25:31.4
3             Owen Danby 25:51.9
4             Tanner Hueglin 26:00.0
5             Andrew Neill 26:00.6
6             Tyler Kuzminski 26:01.0
10          Emile Zanuttini 26:33.4
11          Charlie Mortimer 26:35.1
13          Jack Sacilotto 26:41.3
14          Nathan Arsenault 26:46.4
16          Ethan Rashid-Cocker 26:47.4
17          Josh Aagaard 26:48.8
18          Ian McCosham 26:50.7
19          Max Winfield 26:51.3
20          Emmett Harrington 26:58.0
27          Gavin Bentley 27:27.1
36          Noah Feltham 27:54.3
40          Xavier Bird 27:57.2
43          Nolan Legare 28:05.8