Crossroads League

And it never is something I'm going to take for granted again.

On September 7th, 2026, Huntington University's Abigail Gentz was named the Crossroads League Women's Cross-Country Runner of the Week.

Then a day later, the USTFCCCA NAIA Women's National Athlete of the Week, the first such honor awarded in the 2026 cross-country season.

At Indiana Wesleyan's Twilight Invite on Labor Day weekend, Abby navigated a 5K field of 184 runners to claim the individual title with a time of 18.25, pulling away from the competition by an extraordinary 40 seconds.

winning a national championship outdoors in the 4x800 relay in 2023, which is arguably one of the most epic races to the line in meet history.

He was a multi-time Crossroads League champion in a variety of events from the 4x4 to the 4x8, the 1500, and he was the 2024 League cross-country runner-up.

Part of many nationally top-ranked relays all throughout his years as a collegiate runner, He holds school records in the 4x8 indoors and outdoors, the DMR, and he has top five school performances in the 800,000-mile 4x4 relay and is even in the top 10 in the 3K, showing his incredible versatility and range.

Dean ends his career as an eight-time NAIA Track All-American in the 800,000-1500 DMR and 4x8.

There's a shared experience and I just feel very blessed.

Yeah, I think to sum it all up, I think it is, I feel very blessed.

Well, you come out of the Crossroads League, which has consistently been one of the most competitive conferences in the NAIA and continues to grow.

And lining up week after week with that level of competition is somewhat different than other conferences where perhaps it's not so highly competitive.

The next sports brief is titled Crossroads Announces Honors.

Crossroads League Athletes of the Week for last week included Huntington's Abby Gantz in women's cross country and Kennedy Urban in volleyball and Grace's Ivy Klein in women's soccer.

And the next sports brief is titled, Carol Player Wins Gold with U-23 Volleyball Team.

Carol Libero Calla Hafner collected 14 digs to help the U.S. women's U-23 team to a gold medal at the Pan American Cup with a 3-1 victory over the Dominican Republic.

So Manchester thinks that's the best move for them.

Yeah, they're joining the Crossroads League.

Fall 2027.

All right.

That's all based on your academic ability to get money to go to school.

Last week they announced that they're leaving Division III and going to NAIA and offering athletic scholarships at that level And joining the Crossroads Conference in basketball, which is a pretty prestigious basketball league for the NAIA level.

And I believe the football program is either going to go to an independent route, which I do not think is going to happen.

But I do think they're going to join the mid-states, which would be St. Francis, Indiana Wesleyan, Marion, which some people may be familiar with there in Indianapolis, Taylor.

So, um, it is a tough conference.

The Crossroads League, man.

Unreal.

It, it's...

You know, you gotta fight for it.

And you play each team twice, and so, like, and sometimes three times when you get to the conference tournament.

So you literally know the other Crossroads League teams like the back of your hand.

You know, you scout them, and you're like, "Oh, I've seen this before."

The Trojans pitching staff had a 473 ERA and held opponents to a 253 batting average.

In 2025, Taylor put together the best regular season in program history at a 41 and 8 record, and finished with a program record 47 wins, climbed to number nine nationally, and captured its third straight Crossroads League regular season championship and second consecutive tournament title.

Barber's pitching staff was a huge part of that success, ranking second nationally in whip, third in opponent's batting average, and fourth in both ERA and strikeouts per nine innings.

Staff also produced the Crossroads League Pitcher of the Year, three first team all-league selections, an NAIA All-American, and an MLB draft pick.

Barber's track record goes well beyond his time at Taylor.

Before arriving in Upland, he spent eight years with the Indiana Chargers, helping more than 90 players reach the collegiate level, and working with four pitchers who eventually reached professional baseball, including three MLB draft picks.