Men’s Cross Country Earns Top 10 Finish At MSU’s Spartan Invite

9/11/2026 6:49:00 PM | By: Jamie Dailey '22, SID Assistant

Men's Cross Country Places Ninth Overall At Spartan Invite, Led By Sam Su Placing 18th Overall In The Men's College 8k

EAST LANSING, MI. – The Blue Streaks mixed it up with some of the biggest names in all divisions this morning.

On Friday, September 11th, the team competed up north to the campus of Michigan State University at the Forest Akers Golf Course for the Spartan Invite.

The Blue & Gold placed ninth overall with a total point score of 281 points. Hope College was the top team in Division III, placing seventh overall, earning a score of 205 points.

Individual & Team Results

Leading the way for JCU this morning placing 18th overall with a time of 25:02.6 was Sam Su. The junior earns a new personal best in his 2026 debut and secures a top 20 finish individually.

The next three runners finished very close to each other as Matthew Dienes was the next runner to cross the finish line for JCU. Dienes placed 81st overall with a time of 26:29.9, followed by Joey Naiman with a time of 26:31.5 to place 84th overall.

Earning his way back up in the race was Chris Whiting, who placed 87th overall, clocking in at 26:36.7.

To round up the top five for the Blue Streaks was Charles Payne, finishing 100th overall with a time of 26:49.4 in his debut this year.

Two first years who provided that depth throughout the 8000 meter race were Joey Cappuzzello (26:58.9) and Everett Lynch (27:05.2). Both runners placed 110th and 118th overall.

This was a great opportunity for the men's cross country team to get a good glimpse of the regional championship course, where they will compete again in mid-November.

Next Up
The men will compete in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania for the 52nd Paul Short Run hosted by Lehigh University on Friday, October 2nd. Meet information to come that week.

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