Three weeks removed from the adrenaline and exhaustion of the NAIA Cross Country National Championships, Dordt head coach Nate Wolf finally allowed himself to slow down. For Wolf, the space between seasons is intentional. Experience has taught him the transition—emotionally and mentally—can be just as demanding as the season itself.

"When you finish a year, your adrenaline is all screwed up," Wolf said. "You're tired, you're excited, and then two weeks later you're right into indoor track."

Thanksgiving break has become a reset point. While workouts are still planned and athletes are cared for, Wolf admits he sees a benefit in the pause now more than he did a decade ago. It's a time to recharge, recalibrate, and prepare for what comes next without letting the magnitude of what just happened fade too quickly.

And what happened this fall was something special.

On the men's side, Luke Swanson and Truman Johnson qualified individually for nationals—an experience Wolf describes as uniquely challenging. Without a full team around them, motivation and perseverance take on a different meaning.

Both athletes competed on the sport's biggest stage. Swanson stayed within the top 60 for much of the race before finishing 67th, while Johnson, coming off the emotional high of a GPAC championship, fought through a tougher day. Wolf was proud of how both men positioned themselves, acknowledging the fine margins that define success at the national level.

"In this sport, the difference between 10th and 15th is two seconds," Wolf said. "Between 15th and 25th might be six or eight seconds. It's about who has a half-percent better day."

The women's team arrived at nationals under the radar, despite winning the GPAC championship. Wolf felt confident all along. He believed they were one of the top teams in the country—even if the rankings didn't fully reflect it.

That belief was validated.

Dordt delivered the best national finish in program history, placing third overall and earning a team trophy. Three All-Americans—two of them freshmen—punctuated a performance that exceeded even optimistic expectations.

"There's not a lot more you could ask out of a group," Wolf said.

Freshmen Addy Liston and Joy Koole showed poise well beyond their years, racing near the front and working together with veteran Corinne Braun early in the race. Wolf had seen the potential long before nationals, noting that by midseason he believed multiple All-American performances were possible.

Liston delivered a dream race. Koole, battling illness, showed grit and resolve. Together, they helped propel Dordt into the national spotlight.

Addy Crow, an All-American in the steeplechase in spring 2025, continued her upward trajectory.  A shift in perspective has allowed her to continue to unlock her potential.

"At some point she just said, 'This isn't the most important thing anymore,'" Wolf said. "She started running because she loved it."

That mental freedom sparked a remarkable year—one built on joy, connection, and trust in the process. Wolf believes it's a reminder of what athletes are capable of when fear is replaced with purpose.

"It's amazing what our bodies can do when we're not afraid to fail," he said.

For Corinne Braun, nationals delivered both brilliance and heartbreak. For nearly the entire 6,000-meter race, she ran among the leaders and appeared poised for a historic finish. Then, just 500 meters from the end, things became more difficult.

Braun became ill, collapsing to the course after vomiting. A potential seventh-place finish—and the best individual result in program history—vanished in seconds.

"She raced her best for 5,900 meters," he said. "And there's nothing to show for it."

Yet Braun's response defined her season. She stayed, celebrated her teammates' All-American honors, lifted the trophy, and processed the disappointment with maturity and grace.

"I was just as proud of her—maybe more proud—of how she handled it than if she had finished eighth," Wolf said.

Wolf is careful not to take success for granted. A third-place finish can quickly become an expectation rather than an achievement, but he refuses to let that happen.

"This was a tremendous year," he said. "I don't ever want to lose that perspective."

As Christmas break arrives, Wolf plans to focus on family before indoor track ramps up in January. The season ahead will come soon enough. For now, there's space to breathe, reflect, and appreciate a team that pushed boundaries and made history.