Results
 
HAYS, Kan. – The Colorado School of Mines men's and women's cross country teams both finished first at the FHSU Tiger Open Saturday hosted by Fort Hays State at the Tiger Cross Country Course.
 
Mines' men totaled 48 points thanks to Andreas O'Malley's third-place individual finish. The Orediggers topped a field featuring New Mexico Highlands, Fort Hays State, Regis, and a number of NAIA and NJCAA programs. Mines' women posted a team score of 36 which was anchored by Maria Forster who took seventh place in a field made up of the same programs as the men. The team victories are Mines' first of the season following strong performances as the Roadrunners Invitational and the Gans Creek Classic. It's also the second straight year the Orediggers have won both team titles at the FHSU Tiger Open.
 
The day started with the men's 8K event, and O'Malley set the tone by outracing New Mexico Highland's Weldon Chebon who was the 2025 regional cross country champion and finished eighth in the nation that same year. O'Malley crossed the finish line in 24:14.4 – more than seven seconds faster than Chebon. Next for Mines were Chris Pietrak and Cole Fiorillo who went back-to-back at 10th and 11th in 24:57.1 and 24:59.1, respectively. Jack Sheehan finished 14th in a pack of runners pacing just over 25:00.00. Sheehan's final pace was 25:07.8. Gael McLain Martinez capped Mines' scoring by taking 17th in 25:16.2, and Calder Denham was right on McLain Martinez' hip in 18th thanks to a time of 25:16.3. Nathaniel Bartunek and Owen Mangrum made it eight Orediggers in the top 25 for posterity's sake.
 
In the women's 5K, Mines showed off its patented pack-style running as eight Orediggers finished in the top 20. Forster paced the pack at 18:25 with Chloe Savoy and Elsa Vessely going 9-10 in 18:42.1 and 18:44.7, respectively. Just one runner separated Mines' top three from three more finishers. That trio featured Emma Chesterman in 12th, Kara Tokubo in 13th, and Elise Wrenholt in 14th with a spread of less than two seconds at 18:46.0, 18:46.2, and 18:47.8. Reese Kindig's 17th-place finish and Lilly Lukens in 20th underscored the Orediggers' team dominance.
 
The rest of the Mines contingency on the men's side featured Quinton Rodriguez (28th), Asher Feddock (32nd), Jackson Rogers (33rd), Brian Arndt (45th), James Beam (49th), Kai Wagner (51st), Julien Frazer (57th), Ty Forbes (64th), and Duncan Lorang (80th). Additional competitors for the Oredigger women included Sorrelle Salcido (22nd), Sasha Kelly (23rd), Jemma Petrie (27th), Brooke Bundt (45th), Kaitlyn Burns (49th), and Haley Hilderbrant (54th). The day also marked the first cross country race in a Mines uniform for Petrie and Hilderbrant.
 
Mines' women race Sunday morning at the D2 Pre-Nationals in Lawrence, Kan.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines cross country on "X" (formerly Twitter) and Instagram at @csmtrack. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, "X" and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.