LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Senior Kristen Busch (Waterloo, Ill./Freeburg) wrapped up her highly decorated collegiate cross country career with an 83rd-place finish at the 2015 NCAA Women's Cross Country Championship Saturday.

The first female runner from the Missouri Valley Conference to reach the NCAA Cross Country Championship since 2012, Busch was 111th in the field 2,000 meters into the 6K race Saturday afternoon at the E.P. Tom Sawyer State Park in Louisville, Ky.

She climbed in the standings over the last two-thirds of the course to finish 83rd overall with a time of 20:45.0.  One of 38 individuals in the field of over 250 competitors, Busch missed All-American honors by 17 seconds. 

“For Kristen's first appearance at the National Championship and to finish 83rd was a terrific performance,” said Bradley head coach Darren Gauson.  “She was less than 20 seconds off All-American. It is small margins at this meet. I am so excited to see her finish her cross country career off on such a high.”

The first Bradley runner to compete at the NCAA Cross Country Championship since Mary Ellen Hill in 1999, Busch was a two-time USTFCCCA All-Region performer in cross country and three-time All-Valley honoree.  She holds the Bradley 6K record (20:25.9) and her career-best 5K time is second in school history behind her twin sister's Caitlin Busch's (Waterloo, Ill./Freeburg) school mark. 

Kristen Busch, who was an honorable mention All-American in the 10,000 meters during the 2014 track season, will use her final semester of eligibility during the 2016 track & field season which opens Jan. 16 at the Illini Classic in Champaign, Ill.