Men's Cross Country | 9/3/2026 6:24:00 PM

Emporia State Cross Country
at JK Gold Classic
Clapp Park • Wichita, Kan
Saturday, September 5 • Men's 6K at 7:30 a.m./Women's 5K at 8:00 a.m.
Live Results | Meet Info | Complete Notes in pdf
Up Next: Ollie Isom Invitational
Friday, September 11 • 10:00 a.m.
El Dorado Legion Disc Golf Course/BG Product Stadium • El Dorado, Kan.

LET'S GET IT STARTED
Emporia State opens the 2025 cross country season at the 78th Annual J.K. Gold Classic hosted by Wichita State at the Clapp Cross Country Course in Wichita. There are 11 women's teams and 13 men's teams entered in this year's J.K. Gold Classic. Due to the heat the start of the men's collegiate six kilometer race has been moved to 7:30 a.m. with the women's collegiate 5K has been moved to 8:00 a.m. The awards ceremony is set for 9:30 a.m. following the high school portion of the meet that will consist of 25 teams. It is the first of five regular season meets scheduled for the Hornets.

MIAA PRESEASON POLLS
The MIAA released the 2026 Cross Country Coaches Polls and the Emporia State women are ranked eighth and the men tenth to start the season.
The Hornets welcome back five of the top six men and four of the top five women runners from last year and have a total of 20 men and 16 women in the program this year

LAST RUN
Emporia State held their annual Alumni Run Time Trial on August 28 at Champions Landing.
Dylan Hunter was the top finisher for the men covering the two mile course in 10:08 while Isaac Ibendhal was second at 10:25 and Jack Harty placed third in 10:30. Arwyn Hennessy ran 12:19 to take top honors for the women. She was followed by Brett Jacobson at 12:48 with Emma Bartholome running 12:55 to place third.

THE COACH
Justin Hill is in his third year as head cross country coach at Emporia State and will be in charge of the middle distance and distance runners for the Hornet track and field program. Hill was the director of operations and assistant cross country coach for the Hornets from 2021-24. He served as meet director for Emporia State's regular season home meets in addition to overseeing the operational aspects of the Hornet cross country and track and field programs.

LAST TIME AT THE JK GOLD
The Emporia State cross country teams produced a pair of seventh place team finishes at the 2025 JK Gold Classic hosted by Wichita State.
On a muddy and sloppy course Dylan Hunter had the best finish for the Emporia State men. He ran 19:18.51 to place 14th in the six kilometer men's race.  Carson Fouard was the second Hornet runner with a time of 20:00.36 to finish in 37th place.  Lucas Kreutzer was 52nd in a time of 20:31.14 while Evan Benoit ran 20:37.76 to place 61st overall.  Darren Klukas finished 75th in a time of 21:01.99 to round out the Hornet scoring.  He was followed closely by Elijah Edwards in 76th place and Treyton Laurance in 78th place.
Mason Bina paced the Emporia State women.  She covered the five kilometer course in 20:10.69 to place 32nd with Elizabeth Willhite three spots behind her in a time of 20:15.53 to place 35th overall.  Brooklyn Nolte was the third Hornet finisher in 20:46.95 to place 47th while Emma Bartholome was 56th in a time of 21:04.99.  Heidi Grimmett rounded out the scoring for Emporia State with a tie of 22:11.51 to finish in 74th place.
 
HOW TOUGH IS IT?
There are six women's teams and five men'ts teams from the Central Region ranked in the USTFCCCA National Top 30. The MIAA alone has four women's teams and three men's teams in the top 30. The MIAA and the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) are the only leagues with at least three teams ranked in both the men's and women's polls.
Seven different Association schools are represented in the USTFCCCA Central Regional Rankings. The MIAA men have six of the top ten spots while the women take up five of the top eight positions in the rankings.

UP NEXT
The Hornets will travel to El Dorado on Friday, September 11 to take part in the Olli Isom Invitaitonal hosted by Butler CC. The meet is held on the El Dorado Legion Disc Golf Course located behind BG Products Stadium.