MANHATTAN, Kan. – The K-State men’s and women’s cross country teams will travel back to Stillwater, Okla., to start the postseason with the Big 12 Championship on Saturday (October 31) at the Greiner Family OSU Cross Country Course, hosted by Oklahoma State.
The day will begin with the women’s 6k at 10 a.m. CT, the men’s 8k following at 11 a.m. Admission and parking is free and open to the public while both races can be streamed on ESPN+.
Among the 16 conference teams, three programs are ranked in both the men’s and women’s USTFCCCA top-10 national rankings. For the men, no. 2 Oklahoma State, no. 3 Colorado and no. 5 BYU. For the women, no. 1 BYU, no. 3 West Virginia, no. 7 Oklahoma State and no. 10 Colorado.
Last season the women finished in 9th place with 276 points, the men’s team in 11th place with 298 points, a one place improvement for both teams from the 2024 season. Team champions in 2025 were the BYU women, for the third year in a row, with 38 points and the OSU Cowboys won with 20 points.
K-State’s top three men’s finishers last season were juniors Jackson Esquibel (57th; 24:51.2) and Brock Olsen (60th; 24:56.7) and sophomore Logan Beckman (64th; 25:02.1). This will be the first conference race for sophomores Vance Krudwig and Max Larsona Tulsa transfer.
Just four women from this year’s squad competed at Big 12s last season while senior Paige Baker (80th; 22:11.6) is looking to compete for the fourth time. Sophomores Payton Fink (82nd; 22:14.4), Hanna Keltner (89th; 22:25.1) and Bree Allen (90th; 22:25.1) will help lead a young squad that plans to race three freshmen.
In the final regular season race in the Weis-Crockett Invitational on October 17, the Wildcats had their first crack at the Greiner Family Course. Both teams finished runners-up to hosting OSU, the women with 53 points in the 6k and the men in the 8k with 56 points.
On a complex course, the Wildcats did not achieve any new personal bests but finished with times in the top-10. For the men’s team, Larson (8th; 24:43.1) and Esquibel (10th; 24:54.7), and for the women, freshman Joyce Kiptabut (6th; 21:53.9) and Fink (9th; 22:09.3).
The day will begin with the women’s 6k at 10 a.m. CT, the men’s 8k following at 11 a.m. Admission and parking is free and open to the public while both races can be streamed on ESPN+.
Among the 16 conference teams, three programs are ranked in both the men’s and women’s USTFCCCA top-10 national rankings. For the men, no. 2 Oklahoma State, no. 3 Colorado and no. 5 BYU. For the women, no. 1 BYU, no. 3 West Virginia, no. 7 Oklahoma State and no. 10 Colorado.
Last season the women finished in 9th place with 276 points, the men’s team in 11th place with 298 points, a one place improvement for both teams from the 2024 season. Team champions in 2025 were the BYU women, for the third year in a row, with 38 points and the OSU Cowboys won with 20 points.
K-State’s top three men’s finishers last season were juniors Jackson Esquibel (57th; 24:51.2) and Brock Olsen (60th; 24:56.7) and sophomore Logan Beckman (64th; 25:02.1). This will be the first conference race for sophomores Vance Krudwig and Max Larsona Tulsa transfer.
Just four women from this year’s squad competed at Big 12s last season while senior Paige Baker (80th; 22:11.6) is looking to compete for the fourth time. Sophomores Payton Fink (82nd; 22:14.4), Hanna Keltner (89th; 22:25.1) and Bree Allen (90th; 22:25.1) will help lead a young squad that plans to race three freshmen.
In the final regular season race in the Weis-Crockett Invitational on October 17, the Wildcats had their first crack at the Greiner Family Course. Both teams finished runners-up to hosting OSU, the women with 53 points in the 6k and the men in the 8k with 56 points.
On a complex course, the Wildcats did not achieve any new personal bests but finished with times in the top-10. For the men’s team, Larson (8th; 24:43.1) and Esquibel (10th; 24:54.7), and for the women, freshman Joyce Kiptabut (6th; 21:53.9) and Fink (9th; 22:09.3).
— k-statesports.com —
How to follow the ‘Cats: For complete information on the K-State Track and Field and Cross Country Teams, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team’s social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
Source: www.kstatesports.com
