RIPON, Wis. – Joley Berger and Jenny Cortes are putting the finishing touches on one of the strongest seasons in the history of Ripon women's cross country. Both women ran under the previous school record this season, with Berger taking off a full minute from the last mark while claiming the title of fastest 6k in school history. Cortes, after multiple PRs and the second fastest 6k ever for Ripon, earned her third All-Region honor, the most by any runner in the history of the program. 

"On the women's side, this was statistically the best year in Ripon College history across multiple categories," Head Coach Drew Hoffman said of the season. "We had two athletes run under the previous school record, four earn All-Conference honors, and the highest regional finish our program has ever achieved."

Now, after an 11th place finish for Berger and a 14th place finish for Cortes in a NCAA Regional featuring four of the top ranked teams in the country, the two will conclude the 2025 campaign at the NCAA National Championships in South Carolina. Both are quick to explain the success of the season in the same way. 

"I think from the first meet, the energy was just there with the whole team…" Cortes said of the season. "Our first race was a 5k, and then we went into our 6k at the Oshkosh meet and everyone did amazing, and everyone was just fully supporting each other."

"I feel like it was all just really running for each other," Berger echoes, "That was really what we put an emphasis on, doing it for each other this year."

In total, six Ripon women from this year's team cemented their spots on the All-Time PR list for the program, with the 1st, 2nd, 5th, 8th, 11th and 14th best times now claimed by runners from 2025. The overarching success depended on overarching support. 

"In practice, we always try to support each other, especially during workouts. Every time we pass each other, we always say good job, you're doing good, supporting each other… [In training] our paces are different, but we always make sure we have a buddy, and afterwards we're always talking to each other, asking about each other's runs, this and that," Cortes describes. "After a race, no matter how we performed, we would turn around and wait for every single one of us to cross that finish line and we would scream at the top of our lungs… One by one we all would come in, and the group would just get bigger and our voices would get louder."

"I feel like our team is closer than it's ever been," Berger confirms.

The team's support continued through a strong showing at the Midwest Conference Championships, where the two runners became the first Ripon women to break 22 minutes in the 6k. Two weeks later, the team lined up at the NCAA North Regional starting line, jockeying for a place in the Nationals. 

"It was really intimidating," Berger said of her mindset entering the race, "because looking at the region, the region got really fast. So it was intimidating going into it."

Included in the NCAA North Regional are nationally ranked #6 UW-LaCrosse, #10 Carleton, #23 UW-Eau Claire and #29 St. Olaf, with a host of other strong programs and runners making up the rest of the 30 represented teams. Amid the stiff competition, the duo performed at their best. 

"I don't think I really realized I would go [to nationals] until Drew yelled something at me with like 1k to go, and then I passed two girls." Berger said. 

"At the finish line, there is just a long straight away and it was downhill," Cortes said,  remembering her final stretch of the race, "I remember thinking, just pass this girl in front of you. When you're up [at the front], there's not that many people, so it's just like 'just at least pass this one girl in front of you, and then maybe you'll have a chance'".

Berger crossed the line in 11th place, all but cementing her qualification when considering the strength of the regional. For Cortes, there was a little less certainty. 

"After the race, I knew Joley was going because she was top 11," Cortes said, "so I was like, oh that's awesome. I was two people behind her, so I was like 'maybe, but I don't know'... At least I know I tried… I had to grab my shoes from the start line, and when I came back to the group, they were yelling at me like 'You qualified! You made it!' looking at the stats and all the ranked schools."

Although her teammates were confident, Cortes stayed wary. 

"I was like 'Really? I don't want to assume'. Last year, I kind of disappointed myself because I thought I had a chance but the at-large bids were unexpected… In the back of my mind, I was like 'I qualified', but I tried not to think about it."

Then, on Sunday, Nov 16, the selections were released, confirming both Berger and Cortes in the final race of the season. While Berger finishes her sophomore season, Nationals marks the end of a historic college career for Cortes. 

"It is incredibly exciting to see both Joley and Jenny racing at Nationals together," Hoffman said of his runners. "These two have done 99% of their workout reps side by side all season long. Day after day, they pushed each other, and now they get the chance to do it one last time in South Carolina on the national stage. Jenny becomes the first woman in program history to be a three-time All-Region athlete, and now caps that off with her first trip to Nationals."

The 2025 NCAA DIII National Championships begins Saturday, Nov 22 at 11:00am. You can follow Berger's and Cortes's race and results live here, or check out the NCAA live broadcast here.