DELAWARE, Ohio - October 3, 2025 -  Hiram cross country returned to competition at the OWU Invitational on Friday, marking the official start to Homecoming Weekend for Terrier Athletics.

 

The women's team finished 10th on the campus of their former conference rival, while the men's team had four individual finishers for the evening.

 

The men began the evening with an 8K race about an hour before sunset; sophomore Tanner Markley led the Terriers with a time of 31:47.5 to land 177th overall in the field. It was Markley's best time since regionals in the 2024 campaign.

 

First-year Aidan Jefferson was next to cross the finish line, working his way to a clip of 32:53.0, which beat his mark from the Allegheny Classic (33:28). Michael Crosby (32:54.4) and Connor Green (37:01.3) rounded out the group, as it now has officially turned the calendar to October and the second half of the fall season.

 

On the women's side in the 6K race, junior Elaine Guyette placed 33rd overall (24:19.8) in the field of 140 student-athletes. Similar to Jefferson, the mark was Guyette's best of the season and helped fuel the team's strong finish in the event.

 

First-year MacKenzie Norton finished second on the team with a time of 25:19.6, while McKenzie Riley also made the top-80 finishers in the event (25:44.1). Kylie Moser (25:45.7), Kairi Etsitty (26:29.2) and Taryn Trem (26:57.0) made up the rest of the top finishers on the evening.

 

The Terriers have now reached a critical point in the season; the team will take part in the Oberlin Interregional Rumble on Saturday, October 18 before the PAC Championships on Saturday, November 1.