WICHITA, Kan. - The Fort Hays State men's cross country team opened the 2025 season with a third-place finish at the JK Gold Classic on Saturday (Sept. 6). The Tigers collected 93 team points between the top five finishers, just four points behind Washburn who finished second in the 14-team field.
 
Christian Darrah was the top non-DI runner, placing third out of the 156 finishers. The senior clocked a time of 18:52.1, finishing within 11 seconds of first place. Freshman Austin Ritsema made his collegiate debut with an 18th-place finish, traversing the six-kilometer course in 19:29.7. He was followed closely by Noah Morenz who finished 19th with a time of 19:31.5.
 
Cole Krug also cleared the 20-minute mark after crossing the line in 19:56.8, placing 35th. Ian Weich rounded out the top five with a 39th-place finish after posting a time of 20:07.7.
 
Wichita State secured the team title with 20 points, placing six runners in the top 11 including individual champ Elkana Kipruto who won with a time of 18:41.5.
 
The Tigers will make the drive down I-135 again next Saturday (Sept. 13) when they travel to North Newton, Kan. for Bethel College's Muthama-Rogers Invitational.
 
3rd - Fort Hays State - 93 points
3rd - Christian Darrah - 18:52.1
18th - Austin Ritsema - 19:29.6
19th - Noah Morenz - 19:31.5
35th - Cole Krug - 19:56.8
39th - Ian Weich - 20:07.7
54th - Elijah McCullough - 20:34.0
57th - Emery Wolfe - 20:37.2
68th - Chayse McCullough - 20:47.7
69th - Hayden Nemechek - 20:49.1
73rd - Kamryn Golub - 21:00.0
87th - Kaiden Esfeld - 21:16.0
92nd - Quade Smith - 21:22.3
97th - Andrew Waller - 21:38.1