Homecoming is an exciting time on a university campus.
And while Ashland University's Homecoming is Saturday (Oct. 11), the Eagle men's cross country team will take its exciting start to the 2025 season on the road to Pittsburgh, Pa., to compete at the 8K Carnegie Mellon Invitational.
So far this season, Ashland's men have accomplished milestones not seen in a decade. They are the No. 25 team in the country, as well as the No. 6 team in the Midwest Region – giving rise to thoughts of how the fall may end up.
In the first three meets of the fall, the Eagle men have finished fifth at Wright State, second at the All-Ohio Inter-Collegiate Challenge at Cedarville, and third at the Lock Haven Invitational.
"Just running in a pack is a lot better than running alone," said senior
Nate Slater, who has been in a pack with senior
Braeden Geist and sophomore
Wes Taylor in the top 10 individually in each of the last two meets. "It's like you are running for other people, rather than just yourself. It's just a different mentality.
"It's definitely given the team something to look forward to. Once the pieces started to fall together…it's definitely helped push us during training."
Slater's 8K time has dropped from 25 minutes even at last year's Great Midwest Athletic Conference Championships to 24:25 at Lock Haven.
Geist missed all of the 2024 cross country season due to injury, but has seen an impressive 8K time drop from 26:19.4 two years ago at the conference meet to 24:37.6 at Lock Haven.
"It's been super cool, just to be back from injury and not only be back to running, but running well with a pack of guys," said Geist. "Nate and I trained a lot over the summer. Wes…we've just been able to pack up in a group of three and really work together in all of these meets so far."
Taylor came to campus this year from Rio Grande, and the results have been strong this fall for him as well – an 8K drop from 25:47.9 at the 2024 NAIA Championships to 24:28.5 at Lock Haven.
"It's been awesome. It's great to have a group of guys this close and this far up into the race together," said Taylor. "It's definitely a confidence-booster. I've raced with Nate and Braden a lot, so I can trust them to pull me during the race."
Head coach
Jacob Sussman, who himself was part of successful AU men's cross country teams as a student-athlete, is enjoying the success his pupils are having this fall.
"I love it," Sussman said. "It's been really fun. We're not trying to change anything. What we're doing is working. We're just going to keep moving that way.
"With Braeden being healthy, we were missing two of our top seven last year. The health aspect definitely comes into play, with being consistent. It never hurts to pick up some teammates, whether it's a transfer or freshmen coming in. Wes coming in, with his personality and positiveness, with what we already had, plays a huge factor into everything."
The success of the men's team, however, hasn't just been at the top. Fifth-year
Colton Pinkerton's 8K time has dropped to 25:28 at Lock Haven from 26:37.7 at 2024 G-MACs, senior
Michael Snopik has gone from 26:07.4 to 25:35 in less than a year, redshirt freshman
Samuel Thomas is down to 25:36.2 during his first collegiate XC season, and junior
Colton Thress has gone from 29:49.7 at last year's All-Ohio to 25:51.9 at Lock Haven this year.
Sussman said of Saturday's meet, "It's just fast. Originally, it was supposed to be a hilly meet, to kind of pair up with regionals. We kind of changed some things training-wise with the venue changing to being flat and fast. It fits in recovery-wise."
After Carnegie Mellon, the Eagle cross country teams will run at the 2025 Great Midwest Championships (men's 8K and women's 6K) on Oct. 25 at Northwood. In the athletic department's first four years in the Great Midwest, the AU men have finished seventh once and eighth three times in a row.
"I think we have some big goals for the rest of the year," Geist said. "I'm excited to keep building toward those and see what happens."
Slater said, "The expectation right now is to put our best foot forward. We put the right amount of pressure on each other. We don't overdo it. It's not just all on one person."
The Midwest Regional meet will be Nov. 8 in Kenosha, Wis. – the same spot where the 2025 NCAA Division II Championships will be on Nov. 22.
"Individually, I don't see it as impossible for us three to make it," Taylor said. "With the way we've been moving up in the rankings lately, there's no reason the team shouldn't make it to nationals."
Said Sussman, "They're a top-five-in-the-region team. They've proven that already. We don't need everyone to believe it. We just need to do it."
