JACKS TRAVEL TO GRIAK INVITATIONAL

Friday, September 20

Falcon Heights, Minn.

10:00 a.m.

South Dakota State University

Griak Invitational

Buy Tickets

9/19/2024 10:30:00 AM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country

By: Becca Ball

ROY GRIAK INVITATIONAL HOSTED BY MINNESOTA

When	September 20th Men's Race: 10:00 a.m. Women's Race: 10:45 a.m.
Where	Falcon Heights, Minn. \| Les Bolstad Golf Course
Live Results	pttiming.com
Social Media	X \| Instagram

BROOKINGS, S.D. — South Dakota State cross country heads to Falcon Heights, Minn. for the 38th annual Roy Griak Invitational, hosted by Power Four University of Minnesota on the Les Bolstad Golf Course Friday morning.

HEAD COACH ROD DEHAVEN

"Both teams are excited to test themselves at the Roy Griak Invitational. Historically, this feels like the official start of the season with the challenging competition and course. The race will give us an accurate gauge of where we are at presently and what things we will need to work on to reach our goals for the rest of the season."

THE MEET
Meet Information | Course Maps

The Roy Griak Invitational is held in memory of legendary University of Minnesota coach Roy Griak, who served as the head cross country coach from 1963 to 1996. The Griak Invitational is hosted on the Les Bolstad Golf Course in Falcon Heights, Minn. The fastest women's 6K time recorded at the Griak Invitational is 20:10, set by Kim Smith of Providence in 2004. For the men, Lawi Lalang from Arizona set the Griak Invitational 8K record with a time of 23:15 in 2011.

For the Jacks, now-graduated Leah Hisken set a program course record two years ago with a time of 21:33.5. Last year, the women's team finished 10th of 17 teams with 286 points. Hisken led the team, finishing 19th with a time of 21:44.7.

For the men, Brad Lowery holds the Les Bolstad Golf Course 8K program record, which he set in 2005 with a time of 24:29.2. Last year at the Griak Invitational, the men's team finished 10th of 18 teams with 278 points. Carson Noecker, a freshman at the time, led the team, finishing 15th with a time of 24:38.7, less than 10 seconds away from beating Lowery's record.

ATHLETES TO WATCH

Meghan Ford will be one to watch after her impressive performance at the Augustana Twilight. Ford finished runner-up in her Jackrabbit debut, clocking a PR of 16:47.87. The transfer's PR beat the previous Jackrabbit Yankton Trail course record of 17:30.6, set by Hisken two years ago. Ford's current 6K PR stands at 21:44.2, meaning the transfer will have to beat her personal record by 11 seconds to best Hisken's time.

Brandon Kampsen and Carson Noecker are slated for solid performances at the Griak Invitational. Kampsen enters his first official season with the Jackrabbits after redshirting his freshman year. Kampsen has had a stellar start to the season, finishing first for the Jacks in both meets this year. He kicked off the year by taking first at the Coyote Classic with a time of 18:26.36. A week later, Kampsen led the Jackrabbits to a second-place team finish at the Augustana Twilight. Kampsen took sixth with a time of 18:41.72.

Noecker led the Jackrabbits last year at the Roy Griak Invitational, where he was the first Summit League student-athlete to cross the finish line. Noecker posted a time of 24:38.7 to take 15th overall. The sophomore's 8K PR currently stands at 23:15.7, over a minute faster than Lowery's Les Bolstad Golf Course record, giving Noecker the opportunity to take the SDSU record. Noecker is also set up to take the Roy Griak course record as his PR is only 0.2 seconds away from the record Lalang set in 2011.

LAST TIME OUT

Last time out the Jackrabbits competed in the Augustana Twilight. Ford led the women's team to a second-place team finish, taking silver herself with a 5K PR of 16:47.87. Jessica Lutmer finished second for the Jacks with a time of 17:22.05 to take eighth overall. Courtney Stadter clocked a time of 17:34.68 to finish 10th in her first collegiate meet. Mya Kizer and Ashlyn Hillyard rounded out the scoring five in 11th and 12th, respectively. Kizer finished at 17:37.24, while Hillyard ran in right behind her for a time of 17:37.64. Ford, Lutmer, Stadter, Kizer, and Hillyard combined for 43 points, finishing second behind Power Four University of Nebraska.

The SDSU men ran the Augustana Twilight four-mile course shortly after the conclusion of the women's race. Brandon Kampsen and Cody Larson led the team to a second-place finish, placing sixth and seventh, respectively. Kampsen clocked 18:41.72, while Larson finished four seconds later at 18:45.47. Jackson Dutcher finished 13th with a time of 18:50.53. Will Lohr and Ben Anteau rounded out the scoring five in 15th and 16th, respectively. Lohr finished a second after Dutcher at 18:51.53 while Anteau finished at 18:51.84. The scoring five combined for 55 points, two points behind first-place Iowa Western Community College.

REGIONAL RANKING

This past Monday, the USTFCCCA announced its first in-season regional rankings. The men's team was ranked sixth in the Midwest while the women's team moved up two spots into the top-10.

-GoJacks.com-