COLUMBIA, Mo. – Wichita State travels to Missouri for the eighth annual Gans Creek Classic on Friday morning at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course.
 
The women's Gold Invite 6K race kicks things off at 8 a.m., followed by the men's Gold Invite 8K race at 8:25 a.m. Wichita State is set to compete against 27 men's and 29 women's collegiate programs, including American Conference opponent, Rice, and in-state rivals Kansas and Kansas State.
 
The Shockers last raced at the Gans Creek Classic in 2024, when the men finished 19^th of 36 teams, and the women took 20^th of 38 teams. Last season, the Shockers competed at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course for the Pre-National Invitational, where Elkana Kipruto recorded a runner-up finish with the seventh-fastest time in the history of the course, 22:45.6. Kipruto also became a cross country All-American on the Gans Creek Cross Country Course when he finished 24^th at the 2025 NCAA Championships.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Wichita State cross country swept the men's and women's team and individual titles at the 78^th annual JK Gold Classic at Clapp Cross Country Course. The Wichita State men won their fifth-straight team title, finishing 1-2-3-4-6 for a total of 16 points. The women won their first JK Gold Classic team title since 2023, going 1-3-4-7-10 for a total of 24 points. Nicholas Kipchirchir and Vivien Kipkorir won their Shocker cross country debuts, Kipchirchir finishing the 6K race in 18:01.10 and Kipkorir crossing the line in the 5K in 17:33.72. Reigning American Conference champion and All-American Elkana Kipruto finished right behind Kipchirchir to take second with a 6K time of 18:02.96. Kelvin Kipyego took third in 18:30.69, Bennett Meoli finished fourth in 18:45.92 and Jacob Meyers rounded out the scoring with a time of 18:52.08 to place sixth. For the Wichita State women, Francesca Alvarado was the second Shocker across the line, finishing third with a 5K time of 17:58.97, and freshman Irene Andujar Martinez took fourth with a time of 18:44.72. Isabelle Hartnett and Amanda Treptow also scored for the Shockers, finishing seventh (19:19.51) and 10^th (19:26.73), respectively.
 
SHOCKERS IN THE RANKINGS
The Wichita State men held their position at No. 9 in the USTFCCCA Midwest Region rankings.