SDSU men take eighth, women 14th at Roy Griak Invitational

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FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn. – The South Dakota State men’s cross country squad finished eighth and the women were 14th in the Roy Griak Invitational on a steamy Saturday.

Men

Eighteenth-ranked Colorado State topped the 15-team field with 47 points, while No. 25 Michigan State (55) was second and No. 20 UCLA (63) third.

The Jackrabbits totaled 242 points in eighth.

Colorado State’s Jerrell Mock won the 8K in 24 minutes, 52 seconds. UCLA’s Garret Reynolds (25:03) and Robert Brandt (25:04.4) were second and third, respectively.

SDSU’s Chase Cayo finished 12th in the field of 156 with a 25:32 clocking. 

"Chase had a very impressive race this year, especially with the conditions and the competition," coach Rod DeHaven told SDSU Sports Information. "He showed big improvements from last year where he placed."

Kyle Burdick (25:54) took 22nd, Gabe Peters (27:11) 71st, Sam Ivanecky (27:35) 88th and Sebastian Sowada (27:57) 98th to round out the Jackrabbits’ team score.

Women

Eighth-ranked San Francisco swept the top four places individually and cruised to the team title with 22 points. 23 Iowa State (72) was second, No. 19 Minnesota (85) third and No. 20 Michigan State (91) fourth.

The Jackrabbits had 396 points in 14th.

The Dons’ Weronika Pyzik won the 6K, topping a field of 201 runners with a time of 21:09.2. Teammates Charlotte Taylor (21:11.4), Isabelle Brauer (21:28.1) and Marie Bouchard (21:30.3) were second through fourth.

Jackrabbit Rachel King made her season debut, pacing SDSU by taking 81st in 23:31.

Emily Berzonsky (23:34) finished 83rd, Anna Donnay (23:36) 86th, Cailee Peterson (24:04) 103rd and Halie Mechels (24:15) 117th to complete the team tally.

"The women's side kept the same strategy and they all ran together for most of the race," DeHaven said. "Rachel was kind of feeling it out this race and felt content running with the group. She didn't have any issues and is ready to train hard again.

“The heat kind of exposed some weaknesses. The exciting thing is that we still have a month before the Summit League Championships to improve and try to close the gap."

The SDSU Classic is Friday at 5:30 p.m. at Edgebrook.