Mizzou freshman finishes 35th at cross country nationals to secure All-American honors

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Freshman runner Monica Wanjiku becomes the first woman since 2017 to earn All-American status.

The No. 29 Mizzou women's cross country took 28th at the national championships at Gans Creek on Saturday. The season finale saw the Tigers take to their home course at the first Division 1 NCAA championships ever hosted in Columbia.

Wanjiku crossed the line with a time of 19:17.4 over six kilometers. She came home to finish 35th, good enough to bring Mizzou its first All-American award since national champion Karissa Schweizer.

Behind her, fellow freshman Mirriam Chepkirui and Kobi Walker were the team's second and third finishers. They came home in 154th and 188th, respectively. The junior pairing of Rahel Broemmel and Suzie Lecoutre rounded out the final five scorers for the Tigers.

This was the first time as a team Mizzou had competed since 2016. This year, the team totaled 632 points and was the fifth SEC team, beating out conference opponents Tennessee and Texas A&M.