Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
NCAA
11/14/2026 6:20:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country
Murray State Competes at NCAA Southeast Regional
SPARTANBURG, S.C. — The Murray State men's and women's cross country teams competed at the NCAA Cross Country Southeast Regional hosted by USC Upstate on Friday.
Full results are available here.
The men's team improved its average time by 22 seconds compared to the 2025 regional and placed 29th overall.
Dylan Ellis led the way, placing 136th with a time of 31:52.3, a 33-second personal record in the 10K. Nick Schmitz set a 59-second PR with a time of 32:19.9, and Gabe Russell set a 37-second PR with a time of 32:58.9. Freshman Jackson Lafser finished with a time of 33:40.8, and his fellow freshman, Noah Gray, finished with a time of 34:58.9. Ellis and Lafser made a strong push in the back half of the race, passing 13 and 16 people, respectively, in the final 5,000 meters.
"With technically every guy running a lifetime best, I am very pleased with today's showing," said coach Jordan Johnston. "There has been a lot of growth out of these guys these last few months, and it's rewarding to see it pay off at the final meet of the season."
The women's team placed 31st overall, with Molly Robertson leading the way in 135th with a time of 22:09.8. Autumn Egleston and Abigail Crask improved on their 2025 performances by 16 and 33 places, respectively, as Egleston placed 165th (22:30.6) and Crask placed 182nd (22:45.8). Morgan Bissonnette finished with a time of 23:00.6, Hannah Crain finished with a time of 23:51.6, and Hallie Mosier finished with a time of 24:26.6.
"We had some sickness impact the women's team, but they stayed positive and fought hard," said Johnston. "I'm happy with what they've done individually this season, and I have learned a lot about them as athletes and how to move forward for the upcoming track season."
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