The ISU women’s cross-country team came away with its fourth consecutive Midwest regional championship, winning the meet with 39 points on Friday in Ames.

Sophomore Crystal Nelson won the meet after leading the pack for the majority of the race and came in with a time of 20:12.

“At the end of the day, our girls really worked hard out there,” said ISU Coach Andrea Grove-McDonough. “They showed why they were so good out there. They were so tough, and just weren’t going to get beat today.”

Bethanie Brown was next for the Cyclones, coming in third place overall. She finished with a time 20:24. Perez Rotich and Katy Moen were the other scoring runners for Iowa State, finishing 10th and 12th, respectively.

The team’s first-place finish earned them a trip to the NCAA Championships next week in Terra Haute, Ind.

“We only have a seven-day turnaround for nationals, so I didn’t want to red-line it or anything,” said senior Samantha Bluske. “I just really wanted to compete out there. The energy was absolutely amazing.”

The ISU men’s squad finished third overall, failing to earn an automatic bid to nationals. Whether or not it will still earn an at-large bid has not been determined.

Mohamed Hrezi led the Cyclones, finishing fourth overall, earning him a trip to nationals as an individual.

“I knew that when I arrived here, we had a lot of work to do,” said ISU men’s coach Martin Smith. “We knew it was going to be a long hall. But we went to work every day, and the last two meets [I] have been really excited for us. I just hope that we get another week. There are good days ahead.”