As a coach, there is not a whole lot more you can ask for than to have your team come through with their best performance when it matters the most.

Returning home from the OUA (Ontario University Athletics) Championships in Kingston last weekend, Laurentian Voyageurs cross-country head coach Darren Jermyn was a very satisfied young man.

Both the men's and women's team brought their "A" race to the Old Fort Henry course as the gents not only cracked the top-ten, provincially-speaking, but also found themselves just eight points shy of the Brock Badgers in eighth place.

Racing for the final time as a member of the Voyageurs, fifth year social work major Keon Wallingford led the Vees with a fifteenth place individual finish, posting a time of 24:31.

This performance was instrumental in helping Laurentian minimize their point total (266), but also qualified Wallingford for the U Sports championships in Sherbrooke a week from Saturday.

Closing out his rookie season in style, Timmins native Braeden Estabrooks slid in as second among the L.U. men (52nd - 26:06), with fellow freshman Luke Ford (62nd - 26:41) and local product Brandon Radey (63rd - 26:47).

The final member to score for Laurentian was senior Patrick Leroux (74th - 27:15), followed by displacers Alan Wilkin (79th - 27:36) and Shiloh Sauve (81st - 27:49).

On the women's side, the disappointment of losing 2025 top performer Abby Lanteigne to illness four kilometres in was offset by some very encouraging times for a slew of young Laurentian female talent.

Stepping up to lead the Vees to an 11th place team finish were Valerie Vaillancourt (48th - 30:57 - 1st year), Charli Borak (58th - 31:46 - 1st year), Charlotte Grenier (67th - 32:18 - 3rd year), Georgia Lepage (69th - 32:29 - 2nd year) and Claire Scholl (77th - 33:36 - 4th year).

Ariel Gibbons was the lone L.U. displacer in the women's race, placing 85th place with a time of 35:17.

"Our first year runners really stepped up their game on both squads today, with Valerie, Charli, Braeden and Luke demonstrating that we will have a strong core to build around over the next several years," noted coach Jermyn.

Team Results - Men
1. Queen's Gaels – 50 points
2. Guelph Gryphons – 69 points
3. McMaster Marauders – 80 points
4. Windsor Lancers – 99 points
5. Western Mustangs – 109 points
6. Lakehead Thunderwolves – 185 points
7. Toronto Blues – 189 points
8. Brock Badgers – 258 points
9. Waterloo Warriors – 264 points
10. Laurentian Voyageurs – 266 points
11. Ottawa Gee Gees – 285 points
12. Laurier Golden Hawks – 342 points
13. York Lions – 408 points
14. Nipissing Lakers – 416 points

Team Results - Women
1. Queens Gaels – 70 points (win via tie-breaker)
2. Windsor Lancers – 70 points
3. Western Mustangs – 71 points
4. Guelph Gryphons – 85 points
5. McMaster Marauders – 107 points
6. Toronto Blues – 161 points
7. Brock Badgers – 183 points
8. Waterloo Warriors – 220 points
9. Laurier Golden Hawks – 276 points
10. York Lions – 305 points
11. Laurentian Voyageurs – 319 points
12. Ottawa Gee Gees – 326 points
13. Lakehead Thunderwolves – 378 points