[Cross Country] Women's Cross Country finishes 11th, Men finish 12th at NAIA Mid-States Classic

WINFIELD – The Kansas Wesleyan Women's Cross Country team finished 11th and the men posted a 12th place finish at Saturday's NAIA Mid-States Classic at the Winfield Veteran's Home.

The women's team had a great finish to the regular season portion of its schedule, posting a team average time under 21 minutes for the top five runners, which is a season best.

Stephanie Martinez (SO/Horizon City, Texas) led the Coyotes, setting a new PR in a 5K race by 22 seconds, with a 13th place finish with a time of 19:18.06. Tabethe Deines was 61st for the Coyotes with a time of 20:49.01, Bailie Troll (SR/Clearwater, Kan.) was 68th with a time of 21:04.18, Jaden Bezdicek was 69th with a time of 21:06.90, Jessyka Barten (FR/Woodbine, Kan.) was 98th with a time of 21.59.37, Regan Rhodes (FR/Mullinville, Kan.) was 116th with a time of 22:53.85 and Cindy Sheaffer (FR/Oberlin, Kan.) was 121st with a time of 23:22.73.

"Stephanie will be a strong contender for a Top 5 spot at the conference meet on November 9," Wesleyan head coach Kyle Hiser said. "Jadin raced to a 45-second PR and Bailie Troll had a great race too. The team is looking to capitalize on this momentum going into the conference championships."

The Coyotes were just two points behind Southwestern in the team standings. Oklahoma City was the team champion with 35 points.

The Coyote men did their best to overcome adversity heading into the race with sickness and injuries heading into the meet.

"We performed admirably through the adversity we faced this week," Hiser said. "Our guys that ran today battled and showed a ton of resilience."

Sophomore sensation Kaeori Giron (SO/El Paso, Texas) led the Coyotes finishing 12th with a time of 25:50.68. Freshman Sam Overbey (FR/Leavenworth, Kan.) was 46th with a time of 27:03.02, Jacob Lovell (JR/Junction City, Kan.) was 52nd with a time of 27:11.54, Dorion Estrada (FR/Dumas, Texas) was 90th with a time of 28:12.75, and Jonathan Samayoa (JR/Columbus, Neb.) was 148th with a time of 30:45.98.

The Coyotes now prepare for the KCAC Championships on November 9, hosted by Friends University at the 4 Mile Creek Resort in Augusta, the home course for Wichita State. Wesleyan has competed on the course once already this year in the JK Gold Classic.