Men's Cross Country | 7/8/2026 4:00:00 PM

July 8, 2026-Emporia State will have a taste of the old and a taste of the new during the cross country season this fall.
 
The harriers will open with the ESU Alumni Run exhibition on Friday, August 28, at Champions Landing in Emporia. The two mile evening run will serve as a tune up for the Hornets and is open to anyone to run in for free. The time trial will be followed by dinner for the team and alums at Champs Landing.
 
The Hornets will open the regular season on Saturday, September 5 at the JK Gold Classic hosted by Wichita State. This is the ninth consecutive season Emporia State has opened the regular season at the JK Gold Classic. The men are set to run a 6K course, with the women to run 5K.
 
The next week Emporia State will take part in the Ollie Isom Invite for the first time in six years. The Hornet women will again run a 5K while the men move to 8K on Butler CC's Ollie cross country course on Friday, September 11 in El Dorado, Kan.
 
The Hornets will travel to Columbia, Mo. on Friday, September 25 to take part in the Gans Creek Classic hosted by the University of Missouri. The men will run 8K and the women will move up to 6K on the site of the 2025 NCAA Division I National Championships in Gans Creek Park.
 
It will be a rare Sunday meet as Emporia State heads to Lawrence, Kan. for the Pre-Nationals meet at Rim Rock on October 11. The historic venue will be the site of the 2026 NCAA Division II National Championships and served as the host of the 2025 Big 12 Championships and the 1998 NCAA Division I and II National Championships.  It will be the first time the Hornets have run the women's 6K and men's 8K course at Rim Rock since 2014. 
 
The final regular season action will have Emporia State head to St. Joseph, Mo. for an MIAA Preview meet hosted by Missouri Western on Saturday, October 24.
 
The will return to St. Joseph two weeks later for the MIAA Championships on Saturday, November 7.
 
Teams will then have three weeks to prepare for the NCAA Division II Central Regional Championships that will be held on November 28 at Yankton Trails Park in Sioux Falls, S.D. The men will move their distance up to 10K for the NCAA postseason while the women will remain at 6K.
 
The NCAA Championships will be back at Rim Rock Farm outside of Lawrence, Kan. The championships are scheduled for Friday, December 4 as a part of the D2 Sports Festival hosted by the KC Sports Commission and the MIAA.
 
Emporia State is set to return their top seven men and five of their top eight runners from last year's MIAA Championships.