CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA – The Valley City State University cross country team competed at the Seminole Valley Stampede on Saturday morning in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Valley City State’s women placed 17th out of 20 teams, while the Viking men did not have enough runners to field a team score. The Vikings had four runners finish in the top half of the large meet, which featured about 200 runners in each race.

Govani Garza led the Viking men with a 66th-place finish in the men’s 8k race. A total of 201 runners completed the men’s race. Garza crossed the line in a time of 27:45. Jayden Wheeling was not far behind as he placed 78th with a time of 28:02. Spencer Mattheis finished in a time of 30:28 to placed 147th, and Jane Eissinger (193rd) finished in a time of 34:14.

The Viking women also had two runners finish in the top half of the women’s 5k, which featured 188 runners. Kirsten Ranke led the way with a time of 21:23 as she placed 78th overall. Freshman Grace Bachmeier, making her Viking debut on the cross country course, placed 83rd overall with a time of 21:36. Also for the Viking women, Brooke Tibke (23:22), placed 132nd, Avery Vasicek (23:47) took 42nd, and Terese Kuhbacher (25:09) rounded out the team score in 158th place.

Saturday’s race was the final tune-up for the Vikings ahead of the NSAA Cross Country Championships, which will be held Friday, Nov. 8, in Forest City, Iowa. The top team and top four individuals not on the winning team will advance to the NAIA National Championships.

Up next: VCSU competes at the NSAA Championships on Friday, Nov. 8. The meet will be hosted by Waldorf University in Forest City, Iowa.