WAYNE, NE - On Friday, September 22, the Peru State men's, and women's cross country teams competed in the Wildcat Classic hosted by Wayne State College. The Peru State women's cross country team finished in sixth place with a total time of 2:34:13.63 and an average pace of 30:50.73. The Peru State men's team finished in eighth place as a team with a total time of 2:49:47.41 and an average time of 33:57.49.
 
Here's what coach Cole said about the course itself…
 
"Peru State College competed in the Wildcat Classic hosted by Wayne State College on Friday, September 22," said Cole. "The course was set on the Wayne, NE Country Club golf course and included a lot of elevation changes."
 
Cole continued…
 
"I knew the Wayne course would be one of the most challenging courses of the season, if not the most challenging. The course was damp to start with. Throughout the competition the temperatures were fair with overcast skies. There was some precipitation throughout the race and the heaviest amount occurred during the women's race."
 
Below is a breakdown of how each woman ran individually…
 
Women's 6K
 
Lydia Lang (Palmyra) finished in 62nd place with a time of 29:36.26.
 
Naomi Wilson (Council Bluffs, Iowa) finished in 64th place with a time of 29:47.50.
 
Emma Larson (Fremont) finished in 74th place with a time of 31:11.52.
 
Isabella Watkins (Omaha) finished in 77th place with a time of 31:43.75.
 
Phoebe Wilson (Council Bluffs, Iowa) finished in 78th place with a time of 31:54.60.
 
Sarah Davis-Kovarik (Palmyra) finished in 79th place with a time of 32:16.12.
 
Here's what coach Cole said about the women's race as the NAIA voted to increase the women's championship race distance from five to six kilometers.
 
"This 20% increase in distance on a more difficult course was a mental and physical challenge for our women's team but sets the bar for other upcoming 6,000-meter races the team will face," said coach Cole. "The women's team will race a 5,000-meter distance on October 6th and then run 6,000 meters for the remaining three races of the season."
 
Below is a breakdown of how each man ran individually…
 
Men's 8K
 
Gavin Smith (Omaha) finished in 51st place with a time of 30:51.75.
 
Brady VanBoening (Holdrege) finished in 66th place with a time of 32:37.47.
 
Eleme Mayani (Omaha) finished in 69th place with a time of 33:28.13.
 
Ty Brockhaus (Lincoln) finished in 71st place with a time of 34:53.68.
 
Benjamin Klemesrud (Bassett) finished in 76th place with a time of 37:56.38.
 
Carson Maas (Papillion) finished in 78th place with a time of 39:13.08.
 
Matthew Ramold (Nebraska City) finished in 79th place with a time of 40:41.76.
 
Austen Janssen (Newcastle) finished in 80th place with a time of 41:29.87.
 
Kohl Rutherford (North Platte) finished in 81st place with a time of 42:53.46.
 
Here's what coach Cole said about the men's race…
 
"We have seen an average distance of 4.71 miles in the Sunset Showdown, 4.92 miles in the Greeno-Dirksen meet, and now 5.08 miles in the Wildcat Classic," said coach Cole. "This means that our men's team which is showing slightly slower times from meet to meet is actually improving due to running longer distances in similar times."
 
The cross country team will be back in action on Friday, October 6, at the Hornet Harrier Invite hosted by Emporia State. The women will run at 4:00 p.m. and the men will run at 4:45 p.m.