Fort Hays State Cross Country at
77th Annual JK Gold Classic
Saturday, September 6, 2025
Wichita, Kan. • L.W. Clapp Memorial Park
Men's 8K • 8 a.m.
Women's 5K • 8:30 a.m.
 
The Fort Hays State men's and women's cross country teams will open the 2025 campaign Saturday morning (Sept. 6) at the JK Gold Classic. The men's six-kilometer race will kick things off at 8 a.m. before the women's five-kilometer trek follows at 8:30 a.m. at L.W. Clapp Memorial Park in Wichita, Kan.
 
The women enter the race ranked 26th in Division II, announced Wednesday (Sept. 3) by the USTFCCCA. The women's squad was picked third in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll, while the men head into the year picked eighth by the conference coaches.
 
This is the second-straight season that the Tigers have opened the year at the JK Gold Classic. Both squads placed fourth at the 2024 race, with the men competing in a field of 13 schools and the women facing off against 10 total programs. The women were the top-finishing non-DI team last season and return three of their top four finishers from that race and six of their top eight competitors.
 
Potential entries for the women's squad include Keziah Bachman, Margaret Browning, Esther Clark-Pavlovich, Eva Cortes, Emily Diercks, Janae Fugitt, Ashlyn Harbaugh, Taylor Hoskinson, Abbye Hudson, Brenna Murphy, Madelynn Nichols, Makenzie Premer, Emma Weiner and Cate Wiese.
 
The men's team is expected to run Taran Castro, Christian Darrah, Kaiden Esfeld, Kamryn Golub, Cole Krug, Daniel Little, Chayse McCullough, Elijah McCullough, Noah Morenz, Hayden Nemechek, Austin Ritsema, Quade Smith, Andrew Waller, Ian Weich and Emery Wolfe.
 
Seventeen Kansas colleges and universities from all levels of competition are scheduled to compete, including Bethany, Bethel, Butler CC, Central Christian, Cloud County CC, Colby CC, Cowley College, Emporia State, Fort Hays Tech Northwest, Friends, Kansas Wesleyan, McPherson, Newman, Southwestern, Washburn and Wichita State. The lone out-of-state entry will be a small number of women from the University of Oklahoma.
 
Emily Diercks enters her senior season after winning the MIAA individual Championship last season. She went on to earn All-Region status and earn a spot in the field at the 2024 NCAA Championships where she placed 71st. Diercks placed seventh at this race last season, posting a time of 17:53.1.
 
Other returners include Emma Weiner and Taylor Hoskinson, who both ranked in FHSU's scoring five in all but one race last season. Ashlyn Harbaugh was in the top five of three races in 2024, while Makenzie Premer finished in FHSU's top five twice.
 
The men return seven athletes who finished in the scoring five for the Tigers at least once last fall, led by All-MIAA honoree Christian Darrah who was in the top five of all six races last season. Cole Krug and Noah Morenz also return after both were in the top five three times last fall.
 
Looking ahead, Fort Hays State will compete twice more in September before wrapping up the regular season at home with the FHSU Tiger Open on Saturday, October 11.