On Friday afternoon, the annual Wildcat Classic was held at the Wayne Country Club. Both the Wayne State College women’s and men’s cross-country teams took home team titles. 

The men’s cross-country team scored 40 points to finish ahead of runner-up Mount Marty at 72 points. Titus Kiptoo and Quentin Dreyer placed second and fourth overall for the men’s team, propelling the Wildcats to a team victory.   

“I have been training so hard, and that gave me confidence,” Kiptoo said. “Plus, having a home meet is having an automatic mindset of home advantage.”  

Kiptoo is currently WSC’s top runner and has a history of out-running his competitors. “Being a top runner is another way of being a leader, and it makes me work harder,” Kiptoo said. “I try to help my team members to run with me during normal training, and that way, they get better day by day.”   

Kiptoo spoke on his confidence in this Wildcat group becoming Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Champions this year. “Running competition is something like a bouncing ball; it cannot be predicted as anything can happen,” Kiptoo said. “I would say that my team has been working very hard, and we are looking forward to having a good position in our conference.”  

The women’s cross-country team scored 29 points compared to their runner-up, Dordt University, who scored 51 points. Kylie Pachta and Alison Stineman were the top two finishers for the Wildcats, placing third and fourth. Over 80 runners were competing at Saturday’s meet, but that didn’t stop Freshman Callie Kirchner from finishing in the top ten.  

“My mentality has always been the same, which is just to have fun,” Kirchner said. “The meets are what I train for, and I get to see all my hard work unfold, so I just try and be happy and see what I can do.” 

 Kirchner is one of three freshman runners on the cross-country team, but her age has not stopped her from placing high at meets. “It feels good to be competing with the upperclassmen,” Kirchner said. “I have been able to learn a lot from their experiences.”  

The women’s team has one more meet until the NSIC Championships in Bismarck, N.D.  

“I am pretty confident so far, but I don’t have a lot of knowledge on where we stand,” Kirchner said. “I think after this next meet, we will really see how things are going to turn out, which I am very excited for!”   

The Wildcat men’s and women’s teams will compete again on Saturday, October 7, at the Briar Cliff Invitational held in McCook Lake, South Dakota.