JOPLIN, Mo. — The Concordia-St. Paul men's and women's cross country teams competed at the NCAA Central Region Championships in Joplin, Missouri on Saturday morning. The men's squad placed 22nd out of 30 squads at the regional, while Kayla Anderson came in as the top individual finisher on the women's side.
Andrew Alexander led the way for CSP, finishing with a time of 33:06.79 to finish in 83rd place. The mark is a new personal best 10k time for the junior, smashing his previous PR at last year's regional championships by 34 seconds. This also Alexander's best placement at the regionals after placing 185th in 2023 and 132nd in 2024.
Andrew Boyum came in behind Alexander, placing 112th with a time of 33:36.87. Boyum recorded a new personal best, finishing 46 seconds faster than his time of 34:20.3 at the 2024 regionals. Boyum's PR also allowed him to finish 44 spots better than his 156th place finish at the 2024 regionals.
Coming in six spots behind Boyum, was Travis Tock with a time of 33:43.93 to finish in 118th place. Tock's time is a new personal best, improving a full 1:07 from his 10k time in 2024.
Senior Ethan Bliscke came in with a time of 34:22.79 to finish in 139th place, marking his best placement at the Central Region Championships and a 13 spot improvement from 2024.
Matthew Urgiles-Suarez finished with a time of 35:39.75 in his first collegiate 10k to finish in 175th place. Jordan Stumm finished in 186th place with a time of 36:24.62 and Josh Krummel came in 201st with a time of 39:03.62.
"Our guys continue to show growth and maturation that happens in our running family at CSP," Head Coach Jonathan Breitbarth said. "The individual development of our guys was on display in the 10k."
As a team the Golden Bears finished in 22nd place, earning 628 placement points, coming in ahead of 23rd place Emporia State with 672 points.
"We were behind a number of teams early in the race, but our guys stayed focused on the moment and began working together in passing those other teams," Breitbarth said. "I credit our seniors with continuing a legacy of putting in the consistent work necessary in Division II athletics."
Northwest Missouri claimed the top team spot, earning 72 placement points with the top two individual finishers. Washburn placed second with 104 points, Minnesota State was the highest placing NSIC squad at 15th with 441 points.
Aziz Mohammed of Northwest Missouri claimed the top spot on the podium individually, coming in with a 10k time of 29:53.48. Fellow Bearcat Drew Atkins finished in second with a time of 30:04.49.
On the women's side, Kayla Anderson was the top finisher for the Golden Bears coming in with a time of 23:23.7 in 118th place. Anderson's finish is a new season and personal best for the freshman, besting her time at the NSIC Championships two weeks ago.
Nyadio Chan came in with a time of 23:42.96 to finish in 133rd place. Freshman Lauryn Rosenthal came in with a time of 25:11.04 to finish in 181st place setting a new PR in the process, besting her time at the Lewis Crossover by 18 seconds.
Elise Atkins rounded things out for the Golden Bears coming in with a time of 29:57.62 for a 233rd place finish, setting a new season best in the process.
"Our ladies team grew from each other this season," Breitbarth said. "It was great to see them racing with the same confidence and persistence they have shown all year in the workouts. Their work was rewarded with either a personal or season best time. With their performance Kayla and Nyadio highlighted that they belong in an elite group with some of the best CSP runners over the years."
Winona State claimed the top spot as a team, with one runner finishing in the top-10, earning 99 placement points. Pittsburg State finished in second with 113 points, Nebraska-Kearney came in third with 116 points.
Emily McCullough of Fort Hays State claimed the top spot individually, with 20:32.59 finish in the 6k. Winona State's Sophia Taarud came in third as the top NSIC finisher with a time of 20:48.22.
With the cross country season wrapped up the Golden Bears now turn their focus to indoor track and field season, as the distance runners prepare for the Chuck Peterson Open hosted by Minnesota State at the Myers Fieldhouse in Mankato on Dec. 5.
"As an initial reflection at the end of the year, we are thankful for the incredible support by our athletic department, alumni, family and friends," Breitbarth said. "When the challenges of the season were evident, the support our team felt is what makes CSP special. As we say around CSP, GB4L – Golden Bear for life – from the bottom of our heart, thank you to all our supporters. You make our athletes stronger."
Team Notes
All CSP runners kept or improved their place compared to NSIC competitors at the Central Region Championships.
Women's Individual Notes
Kayla Anderson - 118 - 23:23.7 - Recorded a new personal best time, improving 1:25 from her time at the NSIC Championships. Ran the second fastest race by a first-year CSP runner in program history, manged the fourth fastest race by a CSP runner at the Tom Rutledge Cross Country Course. Anderson also ran the fifth fastest race by a Concordia runner at an NCAA Regional meet, while also managing the highest finish by a first-year runner since Elena Scmidt finished 97th at the 2019 Central Regional. Anderson finished 44th among NSIC competitors improving 35 spots from her 79th place finish at the NSIC Championships.
Nyadio Chan - 133 - 23:43.0 - Recorded a new season best time, improving 55 seconds from her time at the Lewis Crossover. Ran the seventh fastest race by a CSP runner at the Tom Rutledge Cross Country Course. Chan finished 48th among NSIC competitors at the Regional after an 81st place finish at the NSIC Championships, marking a 33 place improvement.
Lauryn Rosenthal - 181 - 25:11.1 - Recorded a new personal best time, improving 18.2 seconds from her time at the Lewis Crossover. Rosenthal finished 65th among NSIC compeitiors, after finishing 105th at the NSIC Championships, marking a 40 place improvement.
Elise Atkins - 233 - 29:57.7 - Recorded a new season best time, improving 1:50 from her finish at the Lewis Crossover.
Men's Individual Notes
Andrew Alexander - 84 - 33:06.8 - Recorded a new 10k PR, improving 33.8 seconds from his performance at the 2024 NCAA Central Regional Championships. Alexander managed the seventh fastest race by a CSP junior runner in program history, with a 3:17 second improvement from his time at the 2023 Region Championships. Alexander also improved 101 spots from his 185th place finish at 2023 meet and 48 places from his finish in 2024. Alexander managed an 18th place finish after finishing 18th at the NSIC Championships.
Andrew Boyum - 112 - 33:36.9 - Ran a new personal best time with a 43.4 second improvement from his time at the 2024 NCAA Central Region Championships. Boyum managed the eighth fastest race by a senior CSP runner, improving 45 spots from his finish at last season's regionals. Boyum finished 31st among NSIC competitors after a 37th place finish at the NSIC Championships.
Travis Tock - 118 - 33:44.0 - Tock recorded a new personal best, improving 1:06 from his time at the 2024 NCAA Central Region Championships. Tock ran the 10th fastest race by a CSO sophomore in program history, with a 56 spot improvement from his 174th place finish at the 2024 Central Regionals. Tock also finished 34th among NSIC competitors after finishing 47th at the NSIC Championships.
Ethan Blischke - 139 - 34:22.8 - Blischke ran a new season best time, improving on his placement at the NCAA Central Regionals for the third time, after managing a 165th place finish in 2022 and a 153rd place finish in 2024. Blischke finished 46th among NSIC competitors after a 74th place finish at the NSIC Championships.
Matthew Urgiles-Suarez - 175 - 35:39.8 - Recorded a new personal best time, finishing 66th among NSIC competitors after a 96th place finish at the NSIC Championships.
Jordan Stumm - 186 - 36:24.7 - Recorded a new personal best time, finishing 72nd among NSIC competitors after a 109th place finish at the NSIC Championships.
Josh Krummel - 201 - 39:03.7 - Recorded a new personal best time, finishing 80th among NSIC competitors after finishing 134th at the NSIC Championships.
