MSU Men’s Cross Country, Rachel Forsyth Earn Bids to NCAA Championship
11/15/2025 7:40:00 PM | Cross Country
EAST LANSING, MICH. - Michigan State men's cross country was awarded an at-large bid to compete at the 2025 NCAA Championships in Columbia, Missouri on Saturday, Nov. 22, while Rachel Forsyth was selected as an individual on the women's side, it was announced in by the NCAA on Saturday.
The 2025 NCAA Cross Country Championships will be held at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia. The women will compete in a 6K race at 10:20 a.m. ET, while the men will run a 10K race at 11:10 a.m. ET.
The Gans Creek course is a very familiar course for MSU. The Spartans will travel back to Columbia for their second race at the Gan Creek Cross Country Course. Earlier this season, MSU competed at the Gans Creek Classic on Sept. 26 when the men finished 10th.
This is the men's first appearance as a team since the 2021 season. Hough competed as an individual last year. In his first NCAA Championship, he had a strong showing finishing 80th with a time of 29:47.2.
At the Great Lakes Regional on Friday, the Michigan State men matched last year's performance, finishing fourth with 103 points. Riley Hough once again was the Spartans' top runner, finishing 10th, crossing the line in 29:58.11 in the 10k race. Standout freshman Thomas Westphal was 12th in his first collegiate 10k (30:06.0). Jack Pennewell ended 22nd with a time of 30:28.3. Hough, Westphal and Pennewell all earned All-Region honors. Hough and Pennewell both repeated as All-Region honorees.
The Spartans join Oregon, Michigan and Wisconsin as Big Ten men's teams competing in the NCAA Championships.
All-American Rachel Forsyth finished third at the Great Lakes Regional to earn an at-large spot. She finished with a season-best time of 19:45.2. Forsyth also repeated with All-Region honors.
The 2025 NCAA Cross Country Championships will be held at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia. The women will compete in a 6K race at 10:20 a.m. ET, while the men will run a 10K race at 11:10 a.m. ET.
The Gans Creek course is a very familiar course for MSU. The Spartans will travel back to Columbia for their second race at the Gan Creek Cross Country Course. Earlier this season, MSU competed at the Gans Creek Classic on Sept. 26 when the men finished 10th.
This is the men's first appearance as a team since the 2021 season. Hough competed as an individual last year. In his first NCAA Championship, he had a strong showing finishing 80th with a time of 29:47.2.
At the Great Lakes Regional on Friday, the Michigan State men matched last year's performance, finishing fourth with 103 points. Riley Hough once again was the Spartans' top runner, finishing 10th, crossing the line in 29:58.11 in the 10k race. Standout freshman Thomas Westphal was 12th in his first collegiate 10k (30:06.0). Jack Pennewell ended 22nd with a time of 30:28.3. Hough, Westphal and Pennewell all earned All-Region honors. Hough and Pennewell both repeated as All-Region honorees.
The Spartans join Oregon, Michigan and Wisconsin as Big Ten men's teams competing in the NCAA Championships.
All-American Rachel Forsyth finished third at the Great Lakes Regional to earn an at-large spot. She finished with a season-best time of 19:45.2. Forsyth also repeated with All-Region honors.
Players Mentioned
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/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
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