Men's Cross Country

HCAC 2025 Cross Country Notebook, Week 7

CARMEL, Ind. – The Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) Cross Country teams competed in week seven of the 2025 season.
 
Around the League:
HCAC Cross Country Schedule
 
Athletes of the Week: 
Men’s Athlete of the Week:
Sam Rinker (Noblesville, Ind.) Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | Sophomore - Sam Rinker finished first overall at the Great Lakes Region Championships in a time of 24:51.3 on the 8K course at E.P. Tom Sawyer State Park in Louisville, Ky., helping the Rose-Hulman men's team finish second and earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships. It is the first time since 2014 and third time in school history they have qualified as a team. Rinker becomes the first men's cross country student-athlete from the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference to win an individual regional championship.

Women’s Athlete of the Week:
Ella Detjen (Lexington, Ky.) Transylvania University | First-year - Ella Detjen finished 11th at Great Lakes Regionals, qualifying her for the national championships as well as earning herself All-Region honors. She is the first athlete (male or female) in Transylvania program history to earn All-Region and qualify for the NCAA Championship in cross country. She was also the top HCAC finisher as well as the second best freshman in the region.

Notable Performances:
Men's:
  • Micah Dodson (Wooster, Ohio) Bluffton University | Junior - Micah Dodson had a breakthrough race at regionals to wrap up the season. He finished in 30:41 which was a 37 second PR for him and broke 31 minutes for the first time ever. He also ran a negative split through the second half of the race by nearly 20 seconds.
Women's:
  • Sara Smith (Mansfield, Ohio) Bluffton University | Sophomore - Sara Smith finished 31st at the Great Lakes Regional meet earning All-Region honors with a PR of 23:00. She moved up from 53rd at the 2150 meter mark. Her time is second-best all-time for Bluffton and is just the second athlete to earn All-Region for the school.
  • Callie Swegman (Columbus, Ind.) Hanover College | Senior - Callie Swegman earned her first All-Region honor at the Great Lakes Regional Cross Country meet on Saturday with her 25th place finish. Her 6K time of 22:51 is the ninth fastest time in school history.