CHADRON, Neb. – Chadron State's cross country programs will compete in the NCAA South Central Region Cross Country Championship this Saturday in Pueblo, Colorado at Walking Stick Golf Course. The women's 6k will take place at 11 a.m., followed by the men's 10k at 12:15 p.m.
The Eagles will be looking to improve on last season's regional finishes of 19th place for both the men's and women's teams. The Adams State women's team and the Colorado School of Mines men's team are the defending regional champions. The Colorado School of Mines men have won six regional titles in a row, and have taken home seven of the last nine regional competitions. The Adams State women have won four of the last five national titles.
The men will be facing 23 teams, and the women will take on 25 teams.
Wyatt Bly, a Chadron State junior, was last year's regional top CSC finisher, male or female, with a time of 33:51.2, finishing 64th. However, Bly is redshirting during the 2025 cross country competition and will not be competing on Saturday.
Samantha Rodewald, another Chadron State junior, was the women's top finisher in last year's regional race, clocking a time of 24:35.7, finishing 79th.
At this year's RMAC Cross Country Championship in October, the Eagles finished 12th for the women, and 13th for the men.
Senior
Lydia Peters led the women's team with a time of 23:33.4, finishing 71st. Following Peters was Rodewald, finishing 86th with a time of 24:02.48.
Redshirt senior
Nate Mann was first to cross the finish line for the men's team in the 8k race with a time of 26:20.06, finishing 56th. Behind Mann was
Blaine Johnson who finished 68th with a time of 26:41.00.
The top three teams in each region, for both genders, are guaranteed a spot at nationals. There will also be 10 more at-large teams in the country pulled from Division II's eight regions. In addition to the 34 qualifying teams, 24 men's runners and 24 women's runners from non-qualifying teams will make the national meet as individuals.
If Chadron State is able to qualify a team or an individual, they will compete at the NCAA Division II National Championships on November 22 in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
