COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The MSU Denver men's and women's cross country teams opened the 2025 campaign at the Rust Buster Invitational, hosted by UCCS. 

The men ran in the 8k race, while the women competed in the 5k event. 

On the men's side, Darren Hayden led the Roadrunners with a 12th-place finish in the 98-runner field, clocking 25 minutes, 32.9 seconds over the 8K course. It marked a personal best for Hayden for the 8k event. 

Twin brothers Jonathan and Jordan Duran crossed nearly side-by-side in 26:01.3 and 26:01.6, placing 19th and 20th overall to solidify MSU Denver's pack presence near the front. 

The Roadrunners showed impressive depth, with Shota Yabuuchi (44th, 26:36.6), Cian Nagle (45th, 26:44.6), and Eisen Dacus (46th, 26:50.2) all finishing within seconds of each other, giving MSU Denver six runners inside the top half of the field.

In the women's 5K, Constance O'Neal impressed in her collegiate debut, surging to a 6th-place finish out of 73 with a time of 17:50.8. She was joined in the top 20 by Tanis Chavez, who placed 18th in 18:30.1. 

Ellie Shaw (31st, 18:59.8) and Alexa McAfee (33rd, 19:01.6) rounded out the Roadrunners' top four, while Abi Read (43rd, 19:22.2) and Peyton Meier (49th, 19:37.5) contributed key depth in the scoring five. 

Avanti Wadhwa (57th, 19:57.7) and Rachel Wheeler (60th, 20:03.6) also turned in solid season-opening performances.
 

MEN'S 8K RESULTS
Darren Hayden, 25:32.9, 12th/98 
Jonathan Duran, 26:01.3, 19th/98 
Jordan Duran, 26:01.6, 20th/98 
Shota Yabuuchi, 26:36.6, 44th/98 
Cian Nagle, 26:44.6, 45th/98 
Eisen Dacus, 26:50.2, 46th/98 
Elijah Garcia, 27:18.8, 62nd/98 
Braden Medina, 28:09.7, 80th/98 
Gustavo Rivera-Castillo, 28:25.3, 84th/98 
Wells Stucker, 29:00.5, 89th/98

WOMEN'S 5K RESULTS
Constance O'Neal,17:50.8, 6th/73 
Tanis Chavez, 18:30.1, 18th/73 
Ellie Shaw, 18:59.8, 31st/73 
Alexa McAfee, 19:01.6, 33rd/73 
Abi Read, 19:22.2, 43rd/73 
Peyton Meier, 19:37.5, 49th/73 
Avanti Wadhwa, 19:57.7, 57th/73 
Rachel Wheeler, 20:03.6, 60th/73