Skip to navigation Skip to content Skip to footer
THE OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF THE DEFIANCE COLLEGE YELLOWJACKETS
Niyonkunda headlines final cross country meet of '25 at WHAC Championships
November 7, 2025

Niyonkunda headlines final cross country meet of '25 at WHAC Championships

Results Results

ADRIAN, Mich. – The Defiance College men's and women's cross country teams finished the 2025 season at the WHAC Championships on Friday at Heritage Park in Adrian, Mich. with women's sophomore runner Adeline Niyonkunda leading the pack for the Jackets.

Niyonkunda ran the 14th-fastest 6-kilometer race in program history with a 23:50.1 to finish in 33rd place overall. She bested her previous 6K time by 13 minutes, which she last ran at last season's WHAC Championships. 

As a team, DC's women placed 9th among 11 teams thanks to multiple personal bests. Amira Knight joined Niyonkunda with a PR and beat her previous best 6K time by more than 2 minutes with a 40:22, blasting her old time of 42:41. Mira Horvath and Zawadi Debola were seconds apart at the finish line, running just over 28-minute races.

The men's team did not register a team score with four finishers but did sport three personal-best runs at the 8-kilometer distance. Eli Fortman's 30:53.6 eclipsed his previous 8K by almost a full minute while Brenden Patterson and J'Vontae Barnes came in just under their previous bests.

Cornerstone won both the men's and women's team championships. Madonna's Mehdi Nait Hamoud was the individual men's champion at 24:49.7, and Indiana Tech's Bronwyn Nel won the women's crown with a time of 21:09.3. 

The WHAC also announced the conference's post-season awards at the championship meet. Defiance's Eli Fortman and Adeline Niyonkunda were honored as part of the Champion of Character Team. DC also received Academic All-Conference for J'Vontae Barnes and Jake Stephens on the men's side while Mira Horvath, Israa Khamis and Amira Knight were honored on the women's team.

Women's Results – 6K Race: 9th of 11

Men's Results – 8K Race

  • Eli Fortman: 30:53.6 (103rd) - PR
  • Brenden Patterson: 32:41.3 (117th) - PR
  • Yafet Mehari: 32:54.9 (119th)
  • J'Vontae Barnes: 36:05.2 (121st) - PR

-JACKETS-