The Fort Hays State men’s cross country team placed third at its home meet on Saturday (Oct. 12) at Sand Plum Nature Trail, just outside Victoria, Kan. The Tigers finished behind perennial Division II powerhouse Adams State, which won the team competition with 33 points, and Nebraska-Kearney, which had 76 points. The Tigers had 106 points.

Cory Keehn was the top individual finisher for FHSU in 11th overall among the 226-runner field. He finished the 8K course in 24:47. He was 28 seconds off the winning pace of 24:19 by Naseem Haje of Adams State. With three unattached runners in the top 10, Keehn’s finish was worth eight team points.

Isaac MIlls and Jonny Bernasky kept the Tigers in the hunt among the top three teams, finishing in 16th and 17th respectively. Mills crossed the line in 24:52 and Bernasky in 24:57. Their finishes were worth 12 and 13 team points. Nathan Purdue finished 26th overall and added 22 team points to the FHSU total by finishing in 25:13.

What kept the Tigers from battling for second was not having a fifth runner packed with their top four. There was a gap of 29 team points between the Tigers’ fourth and fifth runners, while Nebraska-Kearney had just a four-point gap between those runners and their highest team-point scorer posted 24 points compared to 51 for FHSU, which was nearly right on the margin of points between the teams for second and third. Ryan Hopkins rounded out the scorers for FHSU in 59th overall, running 25:51.

Nolan Zimmer was the top MIAA finisher in the race from Northwest Missouri State in third overall. He finished in 24:22. Kevin Carder of Nebraska-Kearney was right behind in 24:26, fourth overall. The MIAA Championships are in two weeks in Pittsburg, Kan. as the Tigers look to defend their conference title from 2012.

— FHSU Sports Information —