COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — MSU Denver cross country delivered a strong all-around performance at the RMAC Championships on Saturday at Monument Valley Park, highlighted by All-RMAC Second Team honors for Paige Tack and Darren Hayden.
The men's side finished 6th of 15 teams with 199 points, while the women's side finished 8th of 15 teams with 230 points.
Competing in one of the most competitive conference meets in Division II, the Roadrunners posted multiple personal bests and demonstrated continued progress on both the men's and women's sides.
Women's 6K
Senior runner Paige Tack paced the Roadrunners with a 26th-place finish in 21 minutes, 55.56 seconds, earning All-RMAC Second Team honors and setting a new personal best. Peyton Meier followed in 37th (22:21.36), while Tanis Chavez (58th, 23:02.46), Ellie Shaw (63rd, 23:11.04), and Abi Read (72nd, 23:35.01) rounded out the top five for MSU Denver.
The Roadrunners showed their depth as Tanis Chavez (58th, 23:02.46), Payton Rusk (74th, 23:43.43), Avanti Wadhwa (79th, 23:50.80), and Rachel Wheeler (92nd, 24:15.47) all ran personal bests, marking one of the team's most complete performances of the season.
Men's 8K
On the men's side, Darren Hayden led the way with a 26th-place finish in 25:22.61, also earning All-RMAC Second Team recognition. He was followed closely by Jordan Duran (40th, 25:47.10) and Jonathan Duran (41st, 25:48.19), while Shota Yabuuchi (52nd, 26:09.04) and Cian Nagle (57th, 26:21.62) rounded out MSU Denver's scoring five.
Charlie Geisler (80th, 27:09.45), Eisen Dacus (93rd, 27:39.21), Elijah Garcia (98th, 28:01.78), and Wells Stucker (120th, 30:11.86) provided depth as the Roadrunners continued to build momentum late in the season.
With two All-RMAC honorees and a long list of personal bests, MSU Denver showed steady improvement across both programs as the postseason begins. The Roadrunners will now turn their attention to the NCAA Division II South Central Regional Championships, set for Saturday, Nov. 8 at CSU Pueblo.
RESULTS
Women's 6k
26th Paige Tack 21:55.56 (2nd team All-RMAC) (Personal Best)
37th Peyton Meier 22:21.36
58th Tanis Chavez 23:02.46 (Personal Best)
63rd Ellie Shaw 23:11.04
72nd Abi Read 23:35.01
74th Payton Rusk 23:43.43 (Personal Best)
79th Avanti Wadhwa 23:50.80 (Personal Best)
92nd Rachel Wheeler 24:15.47 (Personal Best)
Men's 8k
26th Darren Hayden 25:22.61 (2nd team All-RMAC)
40th Jordan Duran 25:47.10
41st Jonathan Duran 25:48.19
52nd Shota Yabuuchi 26:09.04
57th Cian Nagle 26:21.62
80th Charlie Geisler 27:09.45
93rd Eisen Dacus 27:39.21
98th Elijah Garcia 28:01.78
120th Wells Stucker 30:11.86
