Hays, Kan.— Spire Cross-Country hit the road and brought the heat this weekend, taking on the competition at the Fort Hays State University Tiger Open in Hays, Kansas. Both squads delivered strong performances, with the USM women racing their way to a third-place finish in the 5K with 100 points, while the men matched that podium spot in the 8K, securing third overall with 116 points.
The USM women finished just behind a strong FHSU women's team and beat a fellow Top 25 ranked KCAC opponent in the KWU Coyotes. The Spires showed up and made their mark out West. On the men's side, the Spires battled to the finish in the Western Kansas wind coming in just behind a solid Haskell Indian Nations team.
The two-time KCAC Women's Cross-Country Athlete of the Week,
Serenity Desrosier Larson, would lead the Spire women's solid performance on the day. She finished 5
th overall out of the 110 competing athletes with a final time of 18:18.6.
Ava Klaassen would be the next Spire to cross the finish line. Klaassen battled to a strong finish, coming in at 28
th overall with a final mark of 19:13.6.
Shelby Lingle and
Katie Cameron would finish back-to-back coming in at 38
th and 39
th, respectively. Lingle would record a 19:34.7 finish with Cameron finishing 19:36.9.
Norah Watkins would be close behind her teammates. The freshman would finish 42
nd overall with a 19:43.0 final mark in Hays.
Mesa Casper would round out the top 50 of the FHSU Open. Casper would record a 19:58.8 mark.
Derebe Carr would again be the first Spire to finish, coming in 19
th overall out of 143 competitors. Carr would ring in a final mark of 25:18.3 in the 8K.
Mohamed Elgossy would be next up for USM. The sophomore would give it his all and finish at 25:34.2 for 23
rd place overall.
James White III and
Austin Howell would claim the 30
th and 34
th spots, respectively. White recorded a final mark of 25:47.7 with Howell earning a 25:58.8 final time. Jorge Perez would finish a mere second in front of freshman teammate
Landon Englert. Perez would record a final mark of 26:04.3 while Englert would come in at 26:05.5.
Zackary Zumwalt and
Brayden Marcotte would make up the top 50 in this afternoon's competition. Zumwalt would push just ahead and come in with a final 26:06.6 mark while Marcotte would record 26:15.2.
Coming Up…
The regular season is racing toward the finish line, with just one more meet standing between the Spires and the KCAC Cross-Country Championships. USM will head to Omaha, Nebraska, on Saturday, October 24, to compete in the highly competitive NAIA Blazing Tiger Invitational following a well-deserved week of recovery. The Spires will return to action at Platte Ridge Park, with the men's race set to begin at 10 a.m. and the women shortly to follow at 10:45 a.m. as the squad gears up for one final test before championship post-season.
