Cross Country | 9/5/2026 5:50:00 PM

Shelbyville, Indiana – Delivering five top-20 finishes among the collegiate racers, the Oberlin College cross country team premiered their 2026 season at the Grizzly Invite, hosted by Franklin, on Saturday afternoon.

The women's team highlighted with a third-place finish by scoring 86 points, while the men's team finished sixth overall with 166 points, placing ahead of North Coast opponent Wabash. Conference opponent DePauw took home the victory on the women's side with 37 points, while Rose-Hulman secured the victory with 34 points. 

Kicking things off in the men's race, sophomore Cooper Tanski placed 17th overall, clocking in a time of 16:23.5. Senior Piers Shirk ran his first collegiate cross country 5k, as the men typically race 8k, recording a time of 16:33.4 and placing 24th, while rookie Michael Hutnick posted his collegiate debut with a 16:49.6 performance to finish 42nd. Senior Will Gordon crossed the line in 16:55.2, notching a 49th-place finish. 

Rounding out the top five for Oberlin, rookie Kaed Egan delivered a time of 17:06.8 to place 57th overall. Junior Toby Wells-Spackman followed close behind, finishing with a 40-second personal best of 17:14.3 to place 66th. Junior Daniel Beyda navigated the 5k course in 17:39.0, finishing 94th, while classmate Greydan Villano trailed close behind in 17:50.0 to place 104th. Rookie Ben Burleson completed his first collegiate race in 18:27.7 to place 141st, while senior Sam Mortensen raced his first cross country 5k in 18:38.8, finishing 147th. Sophomore Simon Swai rounded out the field for the Crimson and Gold, crossing the line in 20:23.4. 

Carrying the momentum from the men's race, sophomore Lieke Everts produced a cross-country personal best in the 5k with a time of 19:35.8, placing fifth overall and appearing as the only underclassman among the top-five. Junior Samantha Soto recorded a 12th-place finish with a time of 20:19.0, as senior Char Purcell followed close behind in 14th, crossing the line in 20:24.4. Rookie Elis Leppik appeared in her collegiate debut, placing 31st with a time of 21:16.9. 

Classmates Chelsea Larsen and Mirabel Adams worked together to place 37th and 39th, respectively, with times of 21:26.6 and 21.33.9. June Essinger, the team's final displacer, notched a time of 23:35.6 overall to finish 72nd, while classmate Sofia Picucci followed close behind with a time of 23:53.8 to post a 76th-place finish. Sophomore Zoe Engel crossed the line with a time of 24:18.6 to finish 83rd, while junior Solana Pearl rounded out the Oberlin squad with a time of 26:05.2 to place 94th. 

"I was excited for our first-years to have their first collegiate race and for a number of athletes who had not competed in a long time to get back into racing. It was great to have five runners finish in the top 20," Head Coach Izzy Alexander adds. "I'm very pleased with the women's team placing third overall, and with how many of the men's team members worked together and pushed each other during the race. We are looking forward to building on today and for the meets to come!" 

The Crimson and Gold will take a two-week break and return to action on Saturday, September 19, at the Yellowjacket Invitational, hosted by Rochester. The first race is scheduled for 10 a.m.

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