Kansas State University Athletics

Both K-State Teams Finish First at Greeno/Dirksen Invitational
Sep 17, 2022 | Cross Country
The men's and women's team each won their respective races
MANHATTAN, Kan. – The Kansas State men's and women's cross country teams kept the momentum going in the second meet of the season with first-place team finishes at the Woody Greeno/Jay Dirksen Invitational (September 17) in Lincoln, Neb.
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Both teams won the Red Division races with the men's team posting 48 points to out-distance Air Force (53) and Kansas (54), while the women's team collected 46 points to clip second-place Nebraska (49). It was the second straight win for the women's team, which finished first at the Bob Timmons Classic on Sept. 3. The men won a meet title for the first time since the J.K. Gold Classic on Sept. 1, 2018.
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It marked the first time both teams placed first at the same meet since winning the Missouri State Invitational in almost 13 years ago on Sept. 19, 2009.
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Junior Sydney Burton led the way with a fifth-place finish in a new personal-best 5k time of 17:27.4 and was one of five runners to place in the top-20. Burton's 5k time was the best by a Wildcat in the Greeno/Dirksen Invitational. The mark was previously held by Jaybe Shufelberger (2019) at 18:26.4.
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Burton was joined in the top-20 by junior Hannah Stewart (sixth; 17:45.9), junior Cailan Steward (10th; 17:55.5), freshman Grace Meyer (15th; 18:05.0) and freshman Cecilia Fisher (18th; 18:13.6) all with new 5k personal bests on the season. Freshman Katie Schwartzkopf recorded her first collegiate 5k at 19:20.6 and finished in 77th out of 307 runners).
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Four men's runners finished in the top-20 with senior Stephen Kielhofner placing in the top-10 at seventh (24:29.0). Junior Hadley Splechter was right behind at 11th (24:33.4) with Tommy Hazen (16th; 24:47.2) and David Lutgen (17th; 24:47.5) rounding out the front of the pack both with new 8k personal bests.
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FROM THE HEAD COACH
Head Coach Randy Cole
On the men's finish…
"The men ended up running first, they were a lot more patient at the start and executed a really good team pack. I'm really pleased with the way we competed in the middle of the race. The guys were hanging tough over that last mile or so that's when they started picking off a lot of people."
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On the women's finish…
"The women did a super job. We had a lot of people improve from the first meet, they kept their poise, they didn't get too carried away. They really had a good second half, Sydney Burton ran awesome, Hannah Stewart as well, they all did awesome."
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FROM THE COURSE
Junior Sydney Burton
On women's first place again…
"We've all been training hard and working together well in practice, so it's nice to execute when it matters most. We're super excited and eager to keep the ball rolling into the bigger key meets coming up."
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On her personal success…
"Coming off my summer training I knew I was capable of running this time, but two weeks ago didn't reflect my fitness well. I was in my head at the first meet, and it showed, so I've honed in on the mental aspect the last few weeks. I entered today much more confident and calm, which helped a lot."
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MEN'S RED DIVISION FINISH (8k race)
K-STATE'S INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (8k race)
7. Stephen Kielhofner, 24:29.0
11. Hadley Splechter, 24:33.4
16. Tommy Hazen, 24:47.2
17. David Lutgen, 24:47.5
31. Matthew Hauser, 25:10.3
33. Jack Moore, 25:13.0
34. Jack Vincent, 25:15.1
67. Mike Rohlinger, 25:54.1
139. Aiden Higgerson, 27:13.4Â
WOMEN'S RED DIVISION FINISH (5k race)
K-STATE'S INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (5k race)
5. Sydney Burton, 17:27.4
6. Hannah Stewart, 17:45.9
10. Cailan Steward, 17:55.5
15. Grace Meyer, 18:05.0
18. Cecilia Fisher, 18:13.6
61. Helen Giefer, 19:03.6
71. Katie Kasunic, 19:16.4
77. Katie Schwartzkopf, 19:20.6
157. Kate Kowalik, 20:39.9
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UP NEXT
K-State returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 30 when the Wildcats travel to Fayetteville, Ark., for the Chile Pepper Festival at Agri Park. This will be the teams' seventh meet at Agri Park, the first since 2014 when the women finished third with 116 points and the men placed 16th at 473 points.
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How to follow the 'Cats: For complete information on the K-State Track and Field and Cross Country Teams, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
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Both teams won the Red Division races with the men's team posting 48 points to out-distance Air Force (53) and Kansas (54), while the women's team collected 46 points to clip second-place Nebraska (49). It was the second straight win for the women's team, which finished first at the Bob Timmons Classic on Sept. 3. The men won a meet title for the first time since the J.K. Gold Classic on Sept. 1, 2018.
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It marked the first time both teams placed first at the same meet since winning the Missouri State Invitational in almost 13 years ago on Sept. 19, 2009.
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Junior Sydney Burton led the way with a fifth-place finish in a new personal-best 5k time of 17:27.4 and was one of five runners to place in the top-20. Burton's 5k time was the best by a Wildcat in the Greeno/Dirksen Invitational. The mark was previously held by Jaybe Shufelberger (2019) at 18:26.4.
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Burton was joined in the top-20 by junior Hannah Stewart (sixth; 17:45.9), junior Cailan Steward (10th; 17:55.5), freshman Grace Meyer (15th; 18:05.0) and freshman Cecilia Fisher (18th; 18:13.6) all with new 5k personal bests on the season. Freshman Katie Schwartzkopf recorded her first collegiate 5k at 19:20.6 and finished in 77th out of 307 runners).
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Four men's runners finished in the top-20 with senior Stephen Kielhofner placing in the top-10 at seventh (24:29.0). Junior Hadley Splechter was right behind at 11th (24:33.4) with Tommy Hazen (16th; 24:47.2) and David Lutgen (17th; 24:47.5) rounding out the front of the pack both with new 8k personal bests.
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FROM THE HEAD COACH
Head Coach Randy Cole
On the men's finish…
"The men ended up running first, they were a lot more patient at the start and executed a really good team pack. I'm really pleased with the way we competed in the middle of the race. The guys were hanging tough over that last mile or so that's when they started picking off a lot of people."
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On the women's finish…
"The women did a super job. We had a lot of people improve from the first meet, they kept their poise, they didn't get too carried away. They really had a good second half, Sydney Burton ran awesome, Hannah Stewart as well, they all did awesome."
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FROM THE COURSE
Junior Sydney Burton
On women's first place again…
"We've all been training hard and working together well in practice, so it's nice to execute when it matters most. We're super excited and eager to keep the ball rolling into the bigger key meets coming up."
Â
On her personal success…
"Coming off my summer training I knew I was capable of running this time, but two weeks ago didn't reflect my fitness well. I was in my head at the first meet, and it showed, so I've honed in on the mental aspect the last few weeks. I entered today much more confident and calm, which helped a lot."
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MEN'S RED DIVISION FINISH (8k race)
- K-State, 48 pts
- Air Force, 53 pts
- Kansas, 54 pts
- Nebraska, 109 pts
- Drake, 135 pts
- Creighton, 159 pts
- Northern Colorado, 189 pts
- Kansas City, 233 pts
K-STATE'S INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (8k race)
7. Stephen Kielhofner, 24:29.0
11. Hadley Splechter, 24:33.4
16. Tommy Hazen, 24:47.2
17. David Lutgen, 24:47.5
31. Matthew Hauser, 25:10.3
33. Jack Moore, 25:13.0
34. Jack Vincent, 25:15.1
67. Mike Rohlinger, 25:54.1
139. Aiden Higgerson, 27:13.4Â
WOMEN'S RED DIVISION FINISH (5k race)
- K-State, 46 pts
- Nebraska, 49 pts
- Drake, 77 pts
- Kansas, 91 pts
- Northern Colorado, 137 pts
- Wichita State, 170 pts
- Air Force, 173 pts
- Kansas City, 185 pts
- Creighton, 231 pts
K-STATE'S INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (5k race)
5. Sydney Burton, 17:27.4
6. Hannah Stewart, 17:45.9
10. Cailan Steward, 17:55.5
15. Grace Meyer, 18:05.0
18. Cecilia Fisher, 18:13.6
61. Helen Giefer, 19:03.6
71. Katie Kasunic, 19:16.4
77. Katie Schwartzkopf, 19:20.6
157. Kate Kowalik, 20:39.9
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UP NEXT
K-State returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 30 when the Wildcats travel to Fayetteville, Ark., for the Chile Pepper Festival at Agri Park. This will be the teams' seventh meet at Agri Park, the first since 2014 when the women finished third with 116 points and the men placed 16th at 473 points.
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How to follow the 'Cats: For complete information on the K-State Track and Field and Cross Country Teams, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
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