October 22, 2026

THIS WEEK
MADISON, S.D. - The Dakota State University women's and men's cross-country prepares for the regular-season finale Saturday morning at the Blazing Tiger NAIA Classic.  This cross country meet features numerous NAIA schools, including Frontier Conference and Great Plains Athletic Conference schools as they prepare for the upcoming conference meet in two weeks.

The cross-country meet is hosted by Doane (Neb.) and College of Saint Mary (Neb.), taking place at Mahoney State Park in Ashland, Neb.  The women's 6K meet starts at 10 a.m., followed by the men's race at 10:45 a.m.

LAST TIME OUT
Dakota State had four runners compete in the Dordt (Iowa) Holiday Inn Express Classic on Oct. 10 in Sioux Center, Iowa. Kierra Miller paced the Trojans with a 67th-place finish in the women's 6-kilometer Gold Division, clocking a time of 24 minutes, 33.8 seconds. Anna Schneider followed in 77th place with a time of 24:51.6, while Jewel Gannon finished 86th in 25:19.1. Erin Harms rounded out Dakota State's runners with a time of 29:28.0. The race featured 118 finishers, with nationally top-ranked Dordt capturing the team title with 25 points. Dakota State did not record a team score.

Dakota State placed eighth out of 13 teams with 221 points in the men's 8-kilometer Gold Division at the Dordt Holiday Inn Express Classic. TayShaun Cudmore led the Trojans with a personal-best time of 26 minutes, 29.3 seconds, finishing 25th overall. Tyler Nicke followed in 47th place with a season-best time of 27:02.2, while Benjamin Strunk placed 53rd in 27:13.3 and Brendan Gillaspie finished 55th in 27:18.4. Spencer Olsen also established a personal best of 28:02.8. Ben Gerlach added a personal record of 30:04.7 in the Black Division. The Trojans recorded four personal and/or season-best performances during the meet. Host Dordt won the team title with 49 points.

2026 FRONTIER CONFERENCE CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
The 2026 Frontier Conference Cross Country Championships return to Amend Park in Billings, Mont., on Friday, Nov. 6.  This will be the second straight year that the expanded league conference meet takes place in Billings.  Rocky Mountain (Mont.) is the host school for the cross country conference meet.

A total of 11 Frontier Conference schools is scheduled to compete in the conference meet.  The women's 6K race starts at 11:30 a.m. (Central Time)/10:30 a.m. (Mountain Time), followed by the men's 8K race at 12:30 p.m. (CT)/10:30 a.m. (MT).

The team winner in each gender division will receive an automatic bid to the 2026 NAIA Cross Country National Championships at Fort Vancouver Historic Site in Vancouver, Wash., Friday, Nov. 20.

The 2027 and 2028 Frontier Conference Cross Country Championships take place at Valley City Town & Country Club in Valley City, N.D.

2026 DAKOTA STATE CROSS COUNTRY TOP TIMES
Women's (6K)

• Valerija Curikova – 21 minutes, 48.4 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Anna Schneider – 23 minutes, 28 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Kierra Miller – 23 minutes, 44.6 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Jewel Gannon – 24 minutes, .3 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Talya Vincent – 24 minutes, 56.6 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Erin Harms – 26 minutes, 1.9 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25

Men's (8K)

• TayShaun Cudmore – 26 minutes, 29.3 seconds – Dordt (Iowa) Holiday Inn Express Classic – Oct. 10
• Benjamin Strunk – 26 minutes, 46.3 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Brendan Gillaspie – 26 minutes, 55.5 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Evan Armstrong – 27 minutes, 6.3 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Finley McConniel – 27 minutes, 7.5 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Joshua Tucker – 27 minutes, 19 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Holden Jelen – 27 minutes, 22.8 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Baylor Burns – 27 minutes, 34.9 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Jonah Thiele – 27 minutes, 36.2 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Tyler Nicke – 27 minutes, 2.2 seconds – Dordt (Iowa) Holiday Inn Express Classic – Oct. 10
• Spencer Olsen – 28 minutes, 2.8 seconds – Dordt (Iowa) Holiday Inn Express Classic – Oct. 10
• Jeremy Feistner – 28 minutes, 35.6 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Grayson Madsen – 29 minutes, 14.4 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Reese Henrie – 29 minutes, 18.8 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25
• Ben Gerlach – 30 minutes, 4.7 seconds – Dordt (Iowa) Holiday Inn Express Classic – Oct. 10
• Kaiden Akey – 32 minutes, 31.7 seconds – Augustana (S.D.) Invitational – Sept. 25

UP NEXT
Dakota State takes a week off before preparing for the 2026 Frontier Conference Cross Country Championships on Friday, Nov. 6.  The women's 6K race is set for 11:30 a.m. (Central Time)/10:30 a.m. (Mountain Time), followed by men's 8K race at 12:30 p.m. (CT)/11:30 a.m. (MT) at Amend Park in Billings, Mont.