ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The University of Central Missouri Cross Country teams competed at the 2026 MIAA Championships on Saturday, Nov. 7, at the Missouri Western State University Cross Country Course in St. Joseph.
The Jens came in eighth place out of 13 teams, scoring 222 points in the 6k race, with all five scoring runners finishing in the top-70, highlighted by a pair of top-25 finishers.
Sophomore
Marianna Bizon earned Honorable Mention All-MIAA honors for the second straight year with a 19th-place finish with a time of 22:06.1, while Indianola, Iowa native
Jordyn Brown crossed the finish line in 22:28.0 in 23
rd place.
Junior
Yolanda Brooks (48
th place, 23:11.0), California, Mo. native
Kenzleigh Goans (80
th place, 24:10.8), and freshman
Annabelle Rutledge (84
th place, 24:21.2) rounded out the scoring for the Jens.
Missouri Southern took the team title, scoring 60 points, while Rogers State (69 points), Pittsburg State (72 points), Nebraska-Kearney (98 points), and Fort Hays State (133 points) rounded out the top five team scores.
The Mules had a 10th-place finish out of 11 teams, scoring 281 points in the 8k race.
Jorden Anderson finished the race in 26:19.5 in 63
rd-place, while
Patrick Hardesty crossed the line in 64
th with a time of 26.22.6.
Freshman
Drake Keraus (66
th place, 26:29.6), Sedalia, Mo. native
Clay Pilliard (70
th place, 26:33.0), and freshman
Dylan Guck (73
rd place, 26:37.8) rounded out the scoring for the Mules.
Washburn took home the team title, scoring 48 points, with Pittsburg State (51 points), Nebraska-Kearney (84 points), Missouri Southern (100 points), and Rogers State (148 points) rounding out the top five.
Central Missouri returns to action on Saturday, Nov. 21, for the 2026 NCAA-II Central Regional Meet, with the men's 10k race beginning at 10:00 a.m., and the women's 6k race to follow at 11:15 a.m. from Yankton Trails Park in Sioux Falls, S.D.
