White’s Historic Win Leads Cowboys to Runner-Up Finish at Roy Griak Invitational
Senior Jacob White etched his name into Wyoming history Friday morning, capturing the men’s individual title at the 39th Roy Griak Invitational in St. Paul, Minnesota. His victory propelled the Cowboys to a strong second-place team finish, while the Cowgirls battled to seventh against a deep women’s field.
The Cowboys nearly defended their 2023 team crown, falling just short to No. 16 Cal Baptist with 54 total points. Wyoming’s scoring five placed 1-3-6-13-35, showing off impressive front-pack depth.
White became the first Cowboy to win the men’s 8K at this prestigious meet, clocking 24:39.8. After sitting in second through the early splits, he surged past South Dakota State’s Ben Larson at the 5K mark and never looked back, crossing the line nearly 20 seconds ahead. It was a redemption run for White, who had been edged in the final meters of last month’s Wyoming Invite.
Senior teammate Ryker Holtzen stayed close throughout the race, finishing third in 24:57.6. French newcomer Mathis Chavand continued to impress, taking sixth at 25:10.2 for his best finish in Brown and Gold. Senior Mac Zastrow (13th, 25:32.4) and redshirt-freshman Tanner Brown (35th, 26:20.2) rounded out Wyoming’s scoring crew.
The Cowboys also had solid efforts from freshman Colin Olson (45th, 26:36.6), graduate Aidan Ramsey (56th, 27:00.4), sophomore Austin Akers (57th, 27:01.5, a personal best), sophomore Meyer Smith (66th, 27:24.3, personal best), and sophomore Nolan Hoffman (89th, 28:03.1).
On the women’s side, sophomore Muriel Jones paced the Cowgirls with a personal-best 22:50.9 to place 31st in the 6K. Wyoming’s top five finished 31-43-49-52-53 for a team score of 194 points.
Senior Rozlyn Slichko (43rd, 23:15.5) and sophomore Gracie Uhre (49th, 23:26.6) followed closely behind Jones. Sophomore Hanan Aldelemy (52nd, 23:34.4) and junior Brionna Holso (53rd, 23:35.4) finished back-to-back to close out the Cowgirls’ scoring.
Redshirt-freshman Claire Engelhardt, who had been running in the top 15 for much of the race, slipped late to finish 56th (23:37.0). Graduate student Marina Trave (58th, 23:38.4), senior Libby Berryhill (66th, 23:44.0), and redshirt-freshmen Elliana Zock (72nd, 23:52.4), Megan Doherty (87th, 24:09.6), and Reagan Gilman (95th, 24:20.0) also competed.
Up Next
The Pokes return to action October 3rd at the Joe Piane Invitational, hosted by Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana
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