Lehigh University Athletics
Women's Cross Country Preview 2026
9/3/2026 1:17:00 PM | Women's Cross Country
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - The Lehigh women's cross country team opens the 2026 season ranked 15th in the preseason NCAA Mid-Atlantic Region rankings, one spot below where it finished the 2025 season. The Mountain Hawks are coming off a fifth-place finish at the Patriot League Championships.Â
"The women have been battling pretty consistently as a ranked Mid-Atlantic Region team throughout the years, and 2026 should be no exception," head coach Debbie Utesch said.  "Lehigh women have historically raced well at the Bucknell course, which is the site of this year's Patriot League Championships, so we have high expectations coming into the season."Â
Utesch enters her 30th year at the helm of the Lehigh women's cross country program. She will also coach the men's team for the second consecutive season, a role she previously held from 1996-2008. Despite returning to the men's program, Utesch remains committed to maintaining the expectations and culture established within the women's program.Â
"I don't want the women's program to lose some of the expectations that have been established throughout the years," Utesch said. "It's been refreshing to work with both genders again. This sounds elementary to say, but men and women are different. They do not always motivate for and respond to events in the same way. It's been a fun challenge getting to work with both teams, and I'm excited for the year ahead."Â
Lehigh returns an experienced group, bringing back 16 runners from the 2025 team. Leading the group are senior Grace Hughes and junior Kaitlyn Highduch, both of whom received Patriot League honors last season.Â
"We return Grace Hughes, who made the All-Patriot League second team, as well as Kaitlyn Highduch, who made the Patriot League All-Academic Team," Utesch said. "Both women etched their names into the Lehigh top 10 list for performances on the 6,000-meter Goodman Campus Cross Country Course. We're thrilled to have them back, and I can't wait to see how they perform this year."Â
Utesch believes the Mountain Hawks will rely on their depth and experience to lead the way this season.Â
"The returners have built some strong momentum heading into this fall," Utesch said. "Seniors Devon Sutton and Hope Trimmer, juniors Libby Ehrhardt and Brenna Dahlgren, and sophomores Grace Trimmer and Zoe Louis should push the front of our lineup. First-year Keira Arenholz has been training well with the returners, and we expect her to make an impact at some point."Â
Among the returners are sisters Hope and Grace Trimmer, who enter their second season competing together for the Mountain Hawks. They are one of two sibling duos across Lehigh's cross country programs, joined by brothers Ryan and Jason Baker on the men's side.Â
The Lehigh women's cross country team opens competition at the Lehigh Invitational on Friday at 6:30 p.m., following the men's race at 6 p.m. Lehigh will host two additional meets later in the year. The annual Paul Short Run will take place on Oct. 2, and Lehigh will host the NCAA Mid Atlantic-Regional on Nov. 13. The Mountain Hawks schedule also features two trips to Lafayette, once for the Lafayette invitational on Sept. 11 followed by a dual against Lafayette on Sept. 25. Â
