VICTORIA - On the heels of the University of Victoria's historic national title, the Vikes women's cross-country team added two more major accolades at the 2025 U SPORTS Cross Country Championships awards ceremony in Sherbrooke, Que.
Madelyn Eybergen was named U SPORTS Women's Athlete of the Year, while head coach
Hilary Stellingwerff received U SPORTS Women's Coach of the Year honours. Second year athlete
Marisha Thompson earned U SPORTS All-Canadian with her sixth place finish while third-year
Jaxon Kuchar earned U SPORTS Second Team All-Canadian leading the men's side with a ninth place finish at nationals.
The awards capped a dominant weekend for the Vikes, who captured their first national championship since 2001, winning by a commanding 18 points. The victory marked UVic's third U SPORTS women's cross-country title in program history—all earned in Sherbrooke.
Eybergen proved she's the best in the country, rising above a talented national field to claim the individual gold medal, her first career U SPORTS cross country title and the first for a Vikes woman since Anna Gunasekera in 1991. The third-year runner adds the national gold and First Team All-Canadian honours to an already decorated season, which included a silver medal and First Team All-Star at the Canada West Championship.
A former Ontario University Athletics champion and U SPORTS bronze medalist, Eybergen's rapid ascent is remarkable for an athlete who only began competitive running two years ago
[read full story]. Her competitive edge and composure have helped transform the Vikes into the nation's top-ranked program, and it's just the beginning.
For Stellingwerff, the Coach of the Year honour marks her first U SPORTS major award and is a fitting recognition of a steady rise built since taking over the program in 2019/20. The two-time Olympian and 10-time Canadian national team member has guided the women's program from eighth place three years ago to sixth, then third, and now national champions. Stellingwerff also earned Canada West Men's and Women's Coach of the Year honours following the Vikes historic sweep at the conference championship at Royal Roads University.
Under Stellingwerff's leadership, the Vikes have become a model of consistent progress, blending world-class coaching with athlete-centred development.
