Bourbonnais, Ill. – The No. 9 ranked Saint Xavier University women's track & field team finished third out of eight teams, collecting 128 points, at the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) Championships Saturday afternoon at Olivet Nazarene University (Ill.) in Bourbonnais, Ill. It was the second year in a row that the Cougars took third in the meet, and it was the fifth-highest point total in team history. It was the fourth time in the last five seasons that SXU has placed third as a team; they were second in 2024. Senior Emerson Colins (New Lenox, Ill./St. Francis/Lincoln-Way West) tied her school record, set twice earlier this season, winning the 60m Dash to earn All-CCAC with her time of 7.73 seconds. It was her third career win in the race, and she is the first Saint Xavier runner to be crowned CCAC Champion in the event. Fifth-year senior Olivia Mathis (Akron, Ohio/Lourdes/St. Vincent-St. Mary) was also a CCAC Champion after she won the 800m at a time of 2:12.41, the second-best time of her career, and hitting the NAIA 'A' Standard. It was her second career win in the race, and she is the second runner for the Cougars to win the event at the conference meet. Olivet Nazarene won the conference title after they finished with 243 points.

Fifth-year senior Lexi Clarke (Plainfield, Ill./Joliet JC/Plainfield South), who won the 800m last season, earned All-CCAC in the 400m after a second-place run of 57.20 seconds, her second-best career time, hitting the NAIA 'B' Standard. Senior Yanira Deana Paninka (Canary Island, Spain/Central Methodist/IES Jandia) finished second in the 600m to claim All-CCAC with the fifth-best time in team history at 1:34.96, also hitting the NAIA 'B' Standard. Clarke was All-CCAC in the Mile as well, taking second with the second-fastest mark in program history, and a new personal record (PR) at 5:04.71. Mathis broke her program record in the 1000m, picking up All-CCAC honors after her second-place draw of 2:54.88, and reaching the NAIA 'A' Standard. Sophomore Mariah James (Alsip, Ill./Shepard) established a new PR in the Weight Throw, coming away with All-CCAC accolades after a second-place throw of 14.98m.

The 4x400 Relay Team of Deana Paninka, Clarke, Mathis and junior Amaya Rique (St. Louis, Mo./Mineral Area/Seckman) set the SXU record at 3:51.81 after placing second to earn All-CCAC honors. The group also hit the NAIA 'A' Standard. The 4x800 Relay squad of junior Isabel Calderon (Orland Park, Ill./Olivet Nazarene/Sandburg), freshman Briana Krapf (Portage, Ind./Portage), freshman Ava Scheeringa (Hebron, Ind./Hebron) and senior Isabella Alatorre (Blue Island, Ill./Eisenhower) earned All-CCAC recognition after they placed third with a time of 10:11.29.

• In the preliminaries of the 60m Dash, Colins qualified at 7.76 seconds, and Rique set a new PR at 7.83 seconds. In the finals, Rique finished eighth at 8.18 seconds. Also in the prelim, junior Rashiya Warfield (Lansing, Ill./T.F. South) ran a new PR at 8.20 seconds, as did sophomore Sophia Thomas (Highland, Ill./Highland) who PR'd with a time of 8.62 seconds.
• Rique became the new Saint Xavier record holder in the 200m, clocking in at 24.82 seconds in the preliminaries. Colins, the former record holder, also reached the finals with a time of 25.28 for a new PR. In the finals, Colins placed fourth at 25.40 seconds, while Rique was sixth overall at 25.76 seconds. In the prelims, freshman Nyaa Williams (Romeoville, Ill./Romeoville) posted a PR at 26.56 seconds. Warfield also PR'd with her mark of 26.62 seconds.
• Williams logged another PR, this time in the 400m, with a time of 1:03.19. Freshman Sheridan Price (Riverdale, Ill./Thornton Township) set a new PR as well, crossing at 1:10.45.
• In the 600m, Rique placed fourth with her second-best time of the season at 1:39.35. Freshman Alesi Rodriguez (St. John, Ind./Andrean) made her collegiate debut in the race, clocking in at 1:46.55 to finish in seventh place. Senior Kenia Salgado (Cicero, Ill./Morton East) made her season debut, and event debut, recording a 10^th place time of 1:58.73.
• Calderon booked a new PR in the 800m, placing fifth with a time of 2:26.30.
• Clarke just missed the podium in the 1000m, finishing in fourth place at 2:56.06. However, she did establish a new PR while also hitting the NAIA 'B' Standard.
• Alatorre registered a time of 5:52.38 in the Mile. Freshman Jiselle Aldrete (Chicago, Ill./Marist) demolished her previous best time by nearly 19 seconds at 6:35.53.
• In the 3000m, Scheeringa crushed her old PR by almost 20 seconds, crossing the line at 11:42.53. Junior Alexia Guzman (Chicago, Ill./Solorio Academy) ran her second-fastest career time at 12:09.05.
• Warfield bested her own team record in the preliminaries of the 60m Hurdles to qualify at 9.07 seconds. Also in the prelims, Deana Paninka PR'd with her time of 9.34 seconds to also qualify for the final round. Rodriguez checked in with a new PR of 10.95 seconds. In the finals, Warfield missed All-CCAC by 2/100^th of a second (9.158 to 9.160) for a fourth-place draw at 9.16 seconds. Deana Paninka placed fifth at 9.58 seconds.
• Colins recorded her third-best distance in the Long Jump this season, missing third place by 1/100^th of a meter (5.25 to 5.24) at 5.24m. Thomas logged the second-best jump of her career at 5.01m for an eighth-place draw. Wafield also came away with her second-best career distance at 4.92m to finish ninth. Deana Paninka debuted in the event, posting a mark of 4.83m.
• Senior Nayilea Bejarano (Posen, Ill./Eisenhower) established a new PR after she finished ninth overall with a distance of 8.99m.
• In the Shot Put, senior Jamie Sierocki (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) booked a sixth-place throw of 11.06m. Junior Amariah Scott (Chicago, Ill./Thornton Township) was seventh, recording her second-best distance of the season at 10.78m. James was right by her teammate, taking eighth with a mark of 10.75m. Freshman Alexa Pena Flores (Burbank, Ill./Reavis) placed 10^th with a distance of 10.23m.
• Freshman Brooke Becker (Tinley Park, Ill./Tinley Park) registered a PR throw of 13.33m to finish fourth in the Weight Throw. Scott posted the second-best distance of her career at 12.97m for a seventh-place draw. Sierocki was eighth overall with a mark of 12.68m.

No. 9 Saint Xavier finds out next week who officially qualified for the 2026 NAIA Women's Indoor Track & Field National Championships held from March 5-7 at the Alachua County Sports & Events Center at Celebration Pointe in Gainesville, Fla.