Mustangs Claim Second Place at Heart Conference Cross Country Meet

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Mount Mercy men's cross country placed second overall at the 2025 Heart of America Athletic Conference Championship on Saturday, scoring 36 points to finish behind Park University's 25.

The Mustangs placed five runners in the top 11, all recording personal-best times on the 8,000-meter course. Dylan Bledsoe led the Mount Mercy pack with a fourth-place finish in 24 minutes, 49.7 seconds. Noah Gregoire followed in fifth at 24:50.8, while Brady Cortez crossed sixth in 24:52.4.

Ryan Mitchell (24:58.6) and Jonathon Williams (25:01.1) closed out the Mustangs' scoring in 10th and 11th, respectively. All five scoring runners finished within 12 seconds of one another, contributing to the team's tight compression and low spread of 11.4 seconds.

Quinn Swift (25:48.1) and Matthew Schaul (26:07.3) provided displacement depth in 32nd and 38th overall, while Jack Stamp (26:32.6) and Seth Countryman (26:57.9) rounded out Mount Mercy's contingent.

Park's top three runners swept the opening positions to set the tone for the team title, but Mount Mercy maintained consistent pack running through the second mile split and sustained its rhythm across the final two kilometers to secure the runner-up trophy. Benedictine (Kan.) trailed the Mustangs in third with 61 points, followed by Missouri Baptist (108) and William Penn (139).

The Mustangs' performance marked their fourth straight top-three conference finish and solidified their at-large consideration for the upcoming NAIA National Championships in Tallahassee, Florida, on November 21.