Saturday, October 31
Stillwater, Okla.
10 a.m.
Kansas State University
vs
Big 12 Championship
Oct 31, 2026 | Cross Country
The men finished in 10th place, the best performance since 2023, the women in 15th place
STILLWATER, Okla. – The K-State men's and women's cross country teams started the postseason with the Big 12 Championship on Saturday (October 31) racing at the Greiner Family OSU Cross Country Course for a consecutive race. The men's team finished the 8k in 10th place with 262 points, the women team landed in 15th place in the 6k with 362 points.
In the first season under the direction of assistant coach Brent Ewing, the men recorded the highest team finish since 2023, that season they claimed 9th place with 266 points.
The USTFCCCA no. 1 ranked BYU women won the team title for the fourth year in a row with 56 points, followed by no. 3 West Virginia as runner-up with 63 points. Third ranked Colorado men earned the team title for the first time since 2007 with 36 points, followed closely by no. 2 Oklahoma State just two points shy with 38 points.
Racing in wet conditions, all six K-State men finished in the top-100, led by sophomore Max Larson as one of the first 50 finishers, running a time of 24:30.4 in 45th place. Two more men ran under 25 minutes, juniors Jackson Esquibel in 53rd place in 24:41.6 and Brock Olsen at 24:59.5 in 64th place.
"The men ran really tough I thought today," Ewing said. "You know, we had a goal of trying to see if we could crack into top seven, the top eight, and we just fell short of that by a few points. But if you look at what the men did two weeks ago when they were here, compared to today, four out of six of our guys ran faster individual marks."
The three remaining sophomores crossed the finish line within 20 spots of each other, starting with Logan Beckman in 25:17.5 in 68th place and Dylan Plath nine seconds behind in 71st place at 25:26.2 while Vance Krudwig rounded out the pack with a time of 26:11.6 in 88th place.
Freshman Joyce Kiptabut led the Wildcat women finishing just outside the top-50 in 21:33.8 in 52nd place, the only K-State time under 22 minutes. Junior Christine Jerono ran in her first conference race in two years, finishing 78th at 22:18.2.
Freshman McKenna Montgomery was the third Wildcat to cross the finish line, her highest finish of the season in 88th place in a time of 22:29.7. Sophomore Payton Fink finished just two spots behind in 22:32.3 to finish 90th.
The Wildcats' season will wrap up with the NCAA Midwest Regional on Friday, November 13, in Ames, Iowa, at the ISU Cross Country Course.
Big 12 Championship
Greiner Family OSU Cross Country Course
Stillwater, Okla.
Women's Team Finishes (6k)
1. BYU, 56 points
2. West Virginia, 63 pts
3. Oklahoma State, 116 pts
4. Colorado, 117 pts
5. Utah, 132 pts
6. Iowa State, 168 pts
7. Arizona, 219 pts
8. Kansas, 263 pts
9. Cincinnati, 287 pts
10. Texas Tech, 299 pts
11. UCF, 313 pts
12. Arizona State, 325 pts
13. Houston, 350 pts
14. TCU, 352 pts
15. K-State, 362 pts
16. Baylor, 364 pts
K-State's Individual Results
52. Joyce Kiptabut, 21:33.8
78. Christine Jerono, 22:18.2
88. McKenna Montgomery, 22:29.7
90. Payton Fink, 22:32.3
106. Bree Allen, 22:51.5
107. Hanna Keltner, 22:55.0
108. Paige Baker, 22:55.2
125. Sage Siegrist, 23:42.0
Men's Team Finishes (8k)
1. Colorado, 36 points
2. Oklahoma State, 38 pts
3. BYU, 91 pts
4. Iowa State, 104 pts
5. Arizona, 163 pts
6. Kansas, 212 pts
7. Arizona State, 224 pts
8. Cincinnati, 239 pts
9. Houston, 246 pts
10. K-State, 262 pts
11. TCU, 273 pts
12. Texas Tech, 333 pts
13. Baylor, 384 pts
K-State's Individual Results
45. Max Larson, 24:30.4
53. Jackson Esquibel, 24:41.6
64. Brock Olsen, 24:59.5
68. Logan Beckman, 25:17.5
71. Dylan Plath, 25:26.2
88. Vance Krudwig, 26:11.6
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 X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
In the first season under the direction of assistant coach Brent Ewing, the men recorded the highest team finish since 2023, that season they claimed 9th place with 266 points.
The USTFCCCA no. 1 ranked BYU women won the team title for the fourth year in a row with 56 points, followed by no. 3 West Virginia as runner-up with 63 points. Third ranked Colorado men earned the team title for the first time since 2007 with 36 points, followed closely by no. 2 Oklahoma State just two points shy with 38 points.
Racing in wet conditions, all six K-State men finished in the top-100, led by sophomore Max Larson as one of the first 50 finishers, running a time of 24:30.4 in 45th place. Two more men ran under 25 minutes, juniors Jackson Esquibel in 53rd place in 24:41.6 and Brock Olsen at 24:59.5 in 64th place.
"The men ran really tough I thought today," Ewing said. "You know, we had a goal of trying to see if we could crack into top seven, the top eight, and we just fell short of that by a few points. But if you look at what the men did two weeks ago when they were here, compared to today, four out of six of our guys ran faster individual marks."
The three remaining sophomores crossed the finish line within 20 spots of each other, starting with Logan Beckman in 25:17.5 in 68th place and Dylan Plath nine seconds behind in 71st place at 25:26.2 while Vance Krudwig rounded out the pack with a time of 26:11.6 in 88th place.
Freshman Joyce Kiptabut led the Wildcat women finishing just outside the top-50 in 21:33.8 in 52nd place, the only K-State time under 22 minutes. Junior Christine Jerono ran in her first conference race in two years, finishing 78th at 22:18.2.
Freshman McKenna Montgomery was the third Wildcat to cross the finish line, her highest finish of the season in 88th place in a time of 22:29.7. Sophomore Payton Fink finished just two spots behind in 22:32.3 to finish 90th.
The Wildcats' season will wrap up with the NCAA Midwest Regional on Friday, November 13, in Ames, Iowa, at the ISU Cross Country Course.
Big 12 Championship
Greiner Family OSU Cross Country Course
Stillwater, Okla.
Women's Team Finishes (6k)
1. BYU, 56 points
2. West Virginia, 63 pts
3. Oklahoma State, 116 pts
4. Colorado, 117 pts
5. Utah, 132 pts
6. Iowa State, 168 pts
7. Arizona, 219 pts
8. Kansas, 263 pts
9. Cincinnati, 287 pts
10. Texas Tech, 299 pts
11. UCF, 313 pts
12. Arizona State, 325 pts
13. Houston, 350 pts
14. TCU, 352 pts
15. K-State, 362 pts
16. Baylor, 364 pts
K-State's Individual Results
52. Joyce Kiptabut, 21:33.8
78. Christine Jerono, 22:18.2
88. McKenna Montgomery, 22:29.7
90. Payton Fink, 22:32.3
106. Bree Allen, 22:51.5
107. Hanna Keltner, 22:55.0
108. Paige Baker, 22:55.2
125. Sage Siegrist, 23:42.0
Men's Team Finishes (8k)
1. Colorado, 36 points
2. Oklahoma State, 38 pts
3. BYU, 91 pts
4. Iowa State, 104 pts
5. Arizona, 163 pts
6. Kansas, 212 pts
7. Arizona State, 224 pts
8. Cincinnati, 239 pts
9. Houston, 246 pts
10. K-State, 262 pts
11. TCU, 273 pts
12. Texas Tech, 333 pts
13. Baylor, 384 pts
K-State's Individual Results
45. Max Larson, 24:30.4
53. Jackson Esquibel, 24:41.6
64. Brock Olsen, 24:59.5
68. Logan Beckman, 25:17.5
71. Dylan Plath, 25:26.2
88. Vance Krudwig, 26:11.6
-- k-statesports.com --
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 X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
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