By: Cody Bush, Associate Commissioner / Strategic Communications
LAS VEGAS, N.M. – Placing all of its five scoring runners in the Top 10 helped Colorado School of Mines race to its eighth Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference men’s cross country championship at Gene Torres Golf Course on Saturday.
The Orediggers dominated the race’s top five, with Loic Scomparin (23:45.21), Paul Knight (23:52.66), and Logan Bocovich (24:00.33) finishing second, third, and fourth, respectively. Matt Mettler (24:14.29) followed in sixth place, and Max Bonenberger (24:21.25) finished the scoring effort in ninth place. Colorado School of Mines saw its two displacers finish in the Top 25 to complete their dominating run. Orediggers head coach Chris Siemers was the league’s Coach of the Year after leading his team to its eighth team title in the last nine seasons.
Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference
Men’s Cross Country Championship
Team Results
|
| PL |
Team |
Points |
| 1. |
Colorado School of Mines |
24 |
| 2. |
Adams State |
45 |
| 3. |
Western Colorado |
100 |
| 4. |
UCCS |
114 |
| 5. |
CSU Pueblo |
147 |
| 6. |
Fort Lewis |
168 |
| 7. |
MSU Denver |
235 |
| 8. |
Colorado Mesa |
256 |
| 9. |
Colorado Christian |
264 |
| 10. |
South Dakota Mines |
270 |
| 11. |
New Mexico Highlands |
306 |
| 12. |
Black Hills State |
312 |
| 13. |
Regis |
408 |
| 14. |
Chadron State |
416 |
| 15. |
Westminster |
448 |
Adams State’s Romain Legendre won the individual title and was Athlete of the Year, completing the 8K course in 23:33.76 to win the event by 12 seconds. He is the Grizzlies’ first individual men’s champion since Sidney Gidabuday won the title in 2021. Legendre’s effort pushed Adams State to a second-place finish with 45 points.
Oliver Diaz was the league’s Freshman of the Year after leading Western Colorado and all freshmen with a 24:34.52 effort that was 13th in the championship. He paced the Mountaineers’ third-place team performance.
Attention now turns to the NCAA Division II Men’s Cross Country South Central Regional Championships hosted by MSU Denver on November 9 at Washington Park in Denver, Colorado.
RMAC Men’s Cross Country Awards
Athlete of the Year: Romain Legendre, Adams State
Freshman of the Year: Oliver Diaz, Western Colorado
Coach of the Year: Chris Siemers, Colorado School of Mines
First Team All-RMAC & Individual Top 14
| Rank |
Name |
Time |
School |
| 1 |
Romain Legendre |
23:33.78 |
Adams State |
| 2 |
Loic Scomparin |
23:45.21 |
Colorado School of Mines |
| 3 |
Paul Knight |
23:52.66 |
Colorado School of Mines |
| 4 |
Logan Bocovich |
24:00.33 |
Colorado School of Mines |
| 5 |
Jagger Zlotoff |
24:10.36 |
UCCS |
| 6 |
Matt Mettler |
24:14.29 |
Colorado School of Mines |
| 7 |
Juan Rosales |
24:17.47 |
Adams State |
| 8 |
Kidus Begashaw |
24:18.94 |
Adams State |
| 9 |
Max Bonenberger |
24:21.25 |
Colorado School of Mines |
| 10 |
Matisse Virey |
24:31.47 |
CSU Pueblo |
| 11 |
Housem Hrabi |
24:31.98 |
Adams State |
| 12 |
Brett Davis |
24:33.75 |
UCCS |
| 13 |
Oliver Diaz |
24:34.52 |
Western Colorado |
| 14 |
Weldon Chebon |
24:38.99 |
New Mexico Highlands |
Second Team All-RMAC & Individuals 15-28
| Rank |
Name |
Time |
Hometown |
| 15 |
James Kurui |
24:40.67 |
New Mexico Highlands |
| 16 |
Tyler Nord |
24:41.63 |
Western Colorado |
| 17 |
Elijah Smith |
24:44.38 |
Fort Lewis |
| 18 |
Nathan Scherbarth |
24:48.29 |
Adams State |
| 19 |
John Houdeshell |
24:50.15 |
Western Colorado |
| 20 |
Caden Resendez |
24:50.29 |
Fort Lewis |
| 21 |
Andreas O'Malley |
24:50.39 |
Colorado School of Mines |
| 22 |
David Milan |
24:50.82 |
Adams State |
| 23 |
Max Aldrich |
24:51.38 |
Adams State |
| 24 |
Braden Struhs |
24:54.14 |
Colorado School of Mines |
| 25 |
Garrett Watts |
24:58.13 |
Western Colorado |
| 26 |
Kameron Eustace |
25:04.25 |
CSU Pueblo |
| 27 |
Branden Davis |
25:06.91 |
Western Colorado |
| 28 |
Emil Bezecny |
25:10.14 |
Adams State |
About the RMAC
The RMAC is a premier NCAA Division II conference located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with 15 member schools. The RMAC sponsors 22 varsity NCAA sports and has produced 65 NCAA Division II national champions and 52 national runners-up since 1992.
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