The Iowa men’s and women’s cross country programs competed in the Big Ten Championships in Madison, Wisconsin, on Oct. 27.

Overall, the Hawkeye men’s team finished 10th with a score of 258 points, while the women came in 14th after tallying 355 points.

Prior to the race, Iowa distance coach Randy Hasenbank explained the difficulty and intensity of the meet. According to Hasenbank, the recipe for Big Ten success is to keep the team healthy and have everyone on the same page. 

“There is no margin for error in this meet,” Hasenbank said. “There is not one guy on this roster that does not matter.”

Leading the pack in the men’s 8,000-meter race was junior Max Murphy. He crossed the line in 34th place with a time of 25:21.3. 

Following close behind was senior Jack Pendergast with a time of 26:01.1. Pendergast was coming off of an impressive race, as he led the Hawkeyes in their last regular season meet hosted by Bradley on Oct. 13.

Rounding out scoring for the Iowa men’s squad were sophomore Brayden Burnett (26:03.7), junior Ian Geisler (26:09.8), and sophomore Will Ryan (26:11.3).

On the women’s side, the Hawkeyes came in last as a team, replicating their placement from the 2022 Big Ten Championship meet.

The Iowa women’s squad was led by senior Abby Ryon for the first time this season. Ryon finished her 6,000-meter race with a time of 22:49.3 and came in 68th place individually. 

First-year Iowa assistant distance coach Shayla Houlihan was impressed with Ryon’s performance. 

“Abby had a breakout race for us today,” Houlihan told Hawkeye Sports on Friday. “She is one of the most dedicated athletes, and I am incredibly happy to see her leading this team on and off the course.”

Senior Amber Aesoph crossed the line three seconds later, earning 72nd place with a time of 22:52.7. Sophomore Jalyssa Blazek followed suit in 80th place, running a 22:57.6. Senior Alli Bookin-Nosbisch (23:10.4) and sophomore Aleah Tenpas (23:33.1) filled out the scoresheets for the Iowa women’s team. Bookin-Nosbisch and Tenpas earned 89th place and 104th place, respectively.

Despite the women’s squad placing last out of 14 teams, Houlihan told Hawkeye Sports how pleased she was with the team’s growth in the regular season. 

“We have learned a lot about each other as the other season has progressed.”