Milligan’s cycling team competed at the 2025 Collegiate Mountain Bike National Championships, earning three top-five results. USA Cycling hosted the competition Oct. 9–12 in Grand Junction, Colorado.
“I really like the thrill of mountain biking,” said freshman Emma Clark. “I love the challenge of it. It’s hard — doing all five races and piecing it together as I go.”
Milligan scored all top finishes in the omnium category, a competition format that combines multiple disciplines. The events, in either the cross-country or gravity category, included short track, cross-country, downhill and dual slalom. Participants scored points based on their finishes.
Cade Pummill finished fourth in the omnium after placing 40th in the short track and cross-country races, fourth in the downhill competition and 29th in the dual slalom race. Levi Cole placed fifth overall, scoring points in the cross-country and downhill races. He placed 35th in cross-country and 17th in downhill. On the women’s side, Clark placed 22nd in short track, 28th in cross-country, sixth in downhill and 13th in dual slalom, finishing fifth overall.
Milligan finished sixth in the team omnium standings.
This year, varsity teams from 16 schools across the country competed, including programs from NCAA Division I, Division II, Division III, NAIA and NJCAA schools.
“It was a really good opportunity as a freshman team-building-wise,” Clark said. “We all had the opportunity to pre-ride together and race together. It was really fun to just kind of get to know everyone a little bit more and kind of see how the team works.”
Cover Photo: Milligan’s team at 2025 Collegiate Mountain Bike National Championships, Grand Junction, Colorado (by Isaac Bailey)
