TO YOUR MARKS
The final Washburn Ichabod fall sport team is set to make its 2026 debut as the Ichabod men's and women's cross country squad will take to the course on Friday, Sept. 25 at the Augustana Invitational in Sioux Falls, S.D. at the Yankton Trail Park, which will also be the host site for the NCAA Central Regional on Nov. 21. Washburn has not appeared at the Yankton Trail Park since 2016.
RACE COVERAGE
Live results:
https://dakotatiming.anet.live/meets/75998
TIMING
The 8K men's race will start at 10:15 a.m. and the 6K women's race is scheduled to start at 11 a.m.
WHO IS GOING
The men's lineup will consist of
Brody Anderson,
Aidan Braun,
Hunter DeLeeuw,
Sebastiaan Horselenberg,
Rhys Johnson,
Taylor Karcz,
Adrian Lehman,
Lukas Mehl,
Madden Rutherford,
Kyle Wagoner and
Trent Zimbelman.
The women's squad will have
Riley Ammons,
Riley Britton,
Alexis Chadek,
Grace Collins,
Jolie Evans,
Cheyenne Hittle,
Monika Panoutsou,
Nelly Puente,
Kenzie Ross and
Misti Schlabach.
WASHBURN NATIONAL RANKINGS
The Washburn Ichabod men's squad is ranked 19th in the first USTFCCCA national poll released on Sept. 16, tied with Pittsburg State and in the regional rankings, the Ichabods are ranked second ahead of Pittsburg State behind Augustana. The Ichabod women's team was left out of the national and regional rankings heading into its first meet of the season.
MIAA PRESEASON POLLS
The Washburn Ichabod men's cross country squad was selected to finish second in the 2026 Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) men's cross country preseason coaches poll and the women's team was picked to finish seventh.
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE ICHABODS
MEN
KENOSHA, Wisc. – The Washburn men's cross country team closed out the 2025 season with a program-best, 22nd-place finish at the NCAA Division II National Championships on Saturday in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Competing at the Wayne E. Dannehl National Cross Country Course, the Ichabods delivered a complete team effort highlighted by a top-20 national finish from senior standout
Donald Kibet.
Kibet led the Ichabods from start to finish earning his third cross country All-American award, raced inside the top pack throughout the 10,000-meter championship race. The senior surged over the final stretch and crossed the line in 16th place with a time of 30:19.6, the highest national championship finishes in Washburn program history.
The Ichabods' veteran presence continued to show through in the team's middle pack, where seniors
Shane Mullen and
Tommy Roehl worked together for nearly the entire race. The duo remained locked step for step through each checkpoint and ultimately finished less than a second apart. Mullen posted a time of 32:12.1 to place 148th, with Roehl right behind him in 149th at 32:12.4, providing crucial scoring depth in the team standings.
Sophomore
Sebastiaan Horselenberg was next finishing 155th in 32:15.3. Junior
Ludovico Vaccari rounded out Washburn's scoring lineup with a 167th-place finish in 32:23.3, helping the Ichabods secure their top-25 team position. Junior
Lukas Mehl added an additional strong race for the Ichabods, placing 177th in 32:28.2.
The Ichabods improved from their 26th-place finish in 2022 and the 24th-place showing in 2024.
WOMEN
Kyla Lochtefeld, who was the first Ichabod women's national champion qualifier since 2017, finished 96th overall out of 263 runners, finished the 6K course in a time of 21:46.4. Her time was the fastest time by an Ichabod women's runner at the national championships and was the fifth-fastest 6K time in program history.
UP NEXT
The Washburn Ichabod men's and women's team will return to action on Oct. 11 at the NCAA Pre-National meet at Rim Rock Farms in Lawrence, Kan. The site will also be the host venue for the NCAA Division II Championships on Dec. 4.
