Ella DeBruyn broke her personal best by more than 40 seconds at the Phoenix Open in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on Saturday, Sept. 12.

Three NMU Wildcats finished in the top six as the women's cross country team placed second among seven teams.

DeBruyn, a junior, crossed fourth overall in 22:46.9, WZMQ reported. Her previous best was 23:29.6. Sophomore Ashley Choponis was right behind her in fifth at 22:49.9, and senior Lamar Gordon placed sixth in 22:51.7, according to official results from Badger State Timing.

All three finished within five seconds.

St. Thomas won the meet with 49 points. The Wildcats scored 101, well ahead of third-place UW-Stevens Point at 202. Olivia Pauly of St. Thomas took the individual title in 22:18.3.

Beyond the top-six trio, junior Lola Korpi placed 12th in 23:13.0. Dani VanLente (23:52.6) and Anya VanSweden (23:53.2) finished 26th and 27th, giving NMU six runners inside the top 30.

Freshman Addison Jones ran her first career race and was the Wildcats' final scorer, finishing 31st in 23:54.6. Fellow freshman Sophia Nunnery crossed right behind her in 23:55.4.

The meet was NMU's first official competition of the 2026 season. DeBruyn had already signaled her form at the exhibition Wildcat Open on Aug. 21, where she won the five-kilometer course in 18:27.6, according to the Mining Journal.

Head coach Jenny Ryan's squad enters the season with high expectations. NMU finished runner-up at the GLIAC championships in 2025 and earned its first trip to the NCAA Championships since 2017, finishing 24th nationally after climbing as high as No. 12 in the regular-season rankings, according to the Mining Journal. The Wildcats were picked second in the GLIAC preseason coaches poll behind unanimous No. 1 Grand Valley State.

"We just had a great performance at conference, and now it's about training well, recovering and sharpening up for regionals," Ryan said in November 2025 ahead of the NCAA Midwest Regional. Ryan, who has coached NMU cross country since 2007, was named 2025-26 NMU Coach of the Year.

The Wildcats travel to Minneapolis for the Roy Griak Invite on Friday, Sept. 18. The GLIAC Championships are set for Nov. 6 in Hammond, Indiana.