Both the Missouri Southern men’s and women’s cross country teams were back in action last weekend in the NCAA Division II Central Region Championship hosted by Southern at the Tom Rutledge Cross Country Course in Joplin.

Both teams last competed in the 2015 MIAA Championships in Hays, Kan., on Oct. 24, where the men finished seventh, while freshman Vincent Kiprop won the individual title. The ladies finished second, while having five of the team’s 10 runners finish in the top 15.

Men’s:

The men’s cross country program finished 16th and picked up a title when Kiprop won the individual title. That’s back-to-back individual wins for Kiprop as he finished the 10k race in a time of 29:39.92. Kiprop is the first-ever men’s individual region champion in the history of Southern’s program. Kiprop qualifies for the 2015 NCAA Division II National Meet to be held in Joplin Nov. 21. He finished the race 12 seconds faster than the next competitor.

“It’s tough to say just how good Kiprop could be. That was his first time running a 10k race and he won it,” said head coach Bryan Schiding. “His potential, who knows. The sky is the limit for him. Winning the regionals is something no Missouri Southern athlete on the men’s side has ever done. Anybody who wins a region should be very competitive at the nationals. He could be the guy to beat at nationals.”

Nathan Henry placed 30th in a time of 31:41.99, while Jared Haltom was 110th in a time of 33:24.75. Jacob Coffman placed 132nd (34:07.23), Zach Caruthers was 148th (34:49.10), and Luke Johnson rounded out the Lions’ times with a 162nd place finish (35:50.66).

“There’s a very bright future for this group of guys,” said Schiding. “We’re proud to work with them and proud to call them Lions. They will get better.”

Other MIAA athletes joining Kiprop as individuals qualifying for nationals are Fort Hays State’s Cory Keehn and Pittsburg State’s Austin Bogina.

Women’s:

The women’s cross country program finished seventh overall in the NCAA Division II Central Region Championship. Junior Emily Harris led the way for the Lions. Harris placed 14th, finishing 18 seconds shy of qualifying for nationals. She ran the 6k course in a time of 21:32.55. Junior Cynthia Torres placed 22nd in a time of 21:55.45 as both she and Harris earned All-Region honors for their efforts.

Kindra Emberton finished 31st with a time of 22:10.60, while Sarah Usher placed 58th in a time of 22:51.37. Sierra Gray placed 76th in a time of 23:15.42, Amber White placed 118th with a time of 24:07.33, and while Shelby Werner placed 164th in a time of 25:15.25.

“I’m extremely proud of this group of young ladies. They competed well and steadily improved over the course of the season,” said head coach Patty Vavra. “The most important thing to know about this group is that they wanted to be the best they could be. They were willing to do the little things it takes to be the best. They were a lot of fun to coach.”

Nebraska-Kearney’s Morgan Benesch was the only MIAA athlete to qualify for nationals next week in Joplin.