The night before their national championship race, Coach Diljeet Taylor had a message for her runners: “I told them . . . to be gold diggers,” Taylor shared with ESPNU. After their fall cross country season was postponed because of COVID-19, the 2019 NCAA second-place winners followed Taylor’s advice—they dug deep and claimed their gold. ¶
The BYU women’s dominant 65-point win earned the national title at the 2021 NCAA Cross Country Championships, the program’s fifth, and first since 2002.. Five Cougars placed in the top 41, including BYU’s top finisher, Anna Camp Bennett (’21), who came in 11th. ¶“When you can get women to step on the line, empowered and strong, that is when you see magic happen,” Taylor said.
