Murray State University Athletics
Murray State
MVC Championships
10/30/2026 4:37:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country
Murray State Places 8th, 11th at MVC Championships
DES MOINES, Iowa — Nick Schmitz and Molly Robertson highlighted the Murray State effort as the Racers competed at the 2026 MVC Cross Country Championships at the A.H. Blank Golf Course in Des Moines, Iowa.
The Murray State women placed eighth overall, while the men placed 11th.
Molly Robertson paced the Murray State women, placing 27th with a time of 21:18.7, and Autumn Egleston was second on the team, placing 48th with a time of 21:59.5, a 49-second improvement on her 2025 effort. Alyssa Moore placed 51st (22:07.2), and Abigail Crask beat her 2025 time by 81 seconds to place 57th (22:12.7). Morgan Bissonnette placed 65th with a time of 22:30.3 with a 20-second PR in the 5K split and was not passed for the entirety of the race. Hannah Crain and Freya McFadden finished 71st (22:39.4) and 83rd (23:16.4), with Crain running an 18-second personal best and McFadden matching her best mark from earlier in the season. Hallie Mosier completed her senior conference championship with a 34-second lifetime best and a 47-second improvement from last year to finish 86th (23:21.6).
"Molly went through the 5K in 17:23, which is a big PR for her," said coach Jordan Johnston. "Her consistency this season in every meet as well as that 5K split is very promising for her track season this spring. I think she is ready to make another leap very soon. Morgan was such a critical piece to the team this year as a consistent No. 5. We talked throughout the season about putting herself out there more in the beginning of the race, which is an intimidating thing to do. But from the gun she really put herself out there and fought the entire time. I couldn't be happier with how her first collegiate cross country season has gone up to this point."
Nick Schmitz led the way for the men, shattering his lifetime PR by 36 seconds to finish 48th with a time of 25:11.4, giving the junior from Island Lake, Ill., the fourth-fastest time in the 8K in Murray State history. Dylan Ellis placed 57th with a time of 25:30.5, improving on his time from last season's MVC Championships by 30 seconds, while Gabe Russell improved on his time by 25 seconds to finish 70th with a time of 26:00.6. Jackson Lafser placed 78th (26:19.5), and Noah Gray placed 82nd (26:45.1), while Tedros Henderson improved on his time from last season by 4 seconds to finish 85th (27:13.4). Freshman August Anderson placed 88th (27:45.2).
"Nick is having a moment right now and it is well deserved," said Johnston. "He has had some setbacks early on in his collegiate career, but he has a new level of confidence and motivation this year. Something unique about him is that he rarely ever wears a running watch. I will poke fun at him for that in workouts, but in reality, it's what allows him to feel pace so well and part of what makes him such an intelligent racer. He was back in 78th place at the first kilometer, which would make most people really nervous. Nick doesn't get easily influenced by the crowd. He is confident he can run a relatively even-paced race. For today it worked out really well and he ended up passing 30 people before the finish. I think Jackson also deserves a shoutout. He is a freshman with a lower-mileage, middle-distance background. His transition to the 8K has been challenging, but he never complains and fights through every workout and race. I am really happy with how he has done this first season."
