LAWRENCE, Kan. – The Colorado State University Pueblo men's and women's cross country teams will officially open the 2026 season Saturday morning as the ThunderWolves travel to Big 12 Country to compete in the Bob Timmons Rim Rock Cross Country Classic at Rim Rock Farm.
Saturday's meet will provide the Pack with an early opportunity to compete on the same course that will host the NCAA Division II National Championships on Dec. 4 as part of the NCAA Division II Fall Championships Festival.
The men's 6K is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. CT, while the women's 5K will follow at 8:45 a.m. CT. The start times were moved earlier due to the forecast for extreme heat in Lawrence.
For Head Coach Matt Morris, Saturday's opener will be an important first measuring stick for two teams entering the season from different positions.
The CSU Pueblo women feature several new faces following the departure of another decorated senior class, while the men's team returns a more experienced group after going through a similar transition last season.
"We have a lot of new faces," Morris said of the women's team. "The challenge with that is just getting them to come together as a group and gel and get used to the system, but that's been phenomenal. It's happened a lot quicker than I thought."
Morris said the transition has left him optimistic about what the women's team can become throughout the season.
"I think we're in a spot where if we can put things together the rest of the year and figure out what our new philosophy is with this group, we could be pretty good," Morris said.
Women Look to Continue National Tradition
The ThunderWolves enter 2026 following five consecutive appearances at the NCAA Division II National Championships.
CSU Pueblo produced the best national finish in program history with a third-place showing in 2024 before returning to Nationals and finishing 10th in 2025.
The Pack will look significantly different this fall after losing several accomplished veterans, including All-Americans Camille Renou and Olivia Drodz, along with longtime standout Jadyn Herron.
However, Morris believes the culture created by those former ThunderWolves has been passed down to the next group of leaders.
Senior Charlotte Young will take on a larger leadership role after a decorated 2025-26 track and field season. Young was part of CSU Pueblo's NCAA Division II Indoor National Championship Distance Medley Relay team and later qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 800 meters.
Morris said Young has embraced the responsibility of taking the torch from previous leaders within the program.
"Charlotte will step into that role, and she's been doing phenomenal," Morris said.
Junior Lily Smithson is another returner Morris singled out after an impressive offseason.
"Lily Smithson's had a great summer," Morris said. "She's really fit and running phenomenally."
Young and Smithson are joined by sophomore Ella Egizio as returning members of last season's national championship lineup. All three finished the 6K in under 23 minutes at the 2025 NCAA Championships.
The Pack has also added experience through the transfer portal.
Junior Alyssa Kulesa joins CSU Pueblo from Iowa Western Community College, while junior Harriet Tuson comes to Pueblo after stops at Keiser University and the University of New Mexico. Senior Sofia Camacho joins the ThunderWolves after previously competing at Hartnell College and Azusa Pacific.
Morris has been encouraged by what that group has shown throughout the summer and preseason.
"Kulesa came in from Iowa Western and she's really surprised us," Morris said. "She worked hard over the summer. Harriet came in from UNM and had a great summer as well, and then Sofia came in from Azusa."
The influx of experienced newcomers gives CSU Pueblo a veteran presence despite the turnover from last year's national championship team.
"We brought some older girls in that have had some experience at that level, whether it's Division I or Division II," Morris said. "It's just a matter of getting them all to come together and understand the system. They've been great. I think we're better than we look on paper."
The Pack women were selected in a tie for fifth with Colorado Mesa in the 2026 RMAC Preseason Coaches' Poll after receiving 130 points.
Veteran Men's Team Looks to Return to Nationals
While the women's program enters the year blending a veteran core with a large group of newcomers, the men's team finds itself on the opposite end of that process.
CSU Pueblo had several new pieces entering last fall following the graduation of a highly successful senior class. After narrowly missing the NCAA Championships in 2025, that group returns with another year of experience and considerable momentum from the track season.
"On the guys' side, we're kind of the other way around," Morris said. "That was us last year. We had a lot of new faces. This group is a little bit more veteran."
The ThunderWolves qualified for the NCAA Division II National Championships in both 2023 and 2024 before missing a third consecutive appearance last season.
Despite missing Nationals, Morris was pleased with the way the Pack finished the year in one of the strongest regions in NCAA Division II.
The men's team then carried that momentum into the indoor and outdoor track and field seasons, with Jon Sweepe, Caleb McLeod, Tim Anstett and several other distance runners producing standout performances.
Sweepe returns for his senior season after being named CSU Pueblo's 2025 Male Athlete of the Year, while McLeod enters the fall as the reigning NCAA Division II Outdoor National Champion in the 1,500 meters. Anstett also brings All-American credentials in the 800 meters.
Morris said the men's preseason has only increased his confidence in the group.
"Our time trials went great," Morris said. "A lot of great leadership. The kids are getting along, so we're pretty excited to get out there and see where we're at."
One of the biggest preseason standouts has been junior Caden Schweer.
Schweer narrowly missed qualifying for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 10,000 meters last spring and carried that momentum into the summer. Morris said Schweer recorded the fastest performance on the team during CSU Pueblo's preseason time trial.
"He had our fastest time at our time trial, which was within seconds of the fastest time we've ever had," Morris said. "He had a great finish to his outdoor year last year and just missed making Outdoor Nationals in the 10K."
Senior Aaron Roberds is another runner Morris expects to provide valuable depth after a strong summer, while fifth-year senior Kameron Eustace brings extensive experience to the Pack lineup.
"Aaron's been really consistent," Morris said. "I'm excited for his last year. I think he's had a great summer, and he looked great in the time trial."
The Pack was selected sixth in the RMAC Men's Cross Country Preseason Coaches' Poll with 123 points.
Leadership Continues to Drive Pack Culture
For Morris, CSU Pueblo's continued success has been driven by a culture passed from one group of student-athletes to the next.
On the men's side, Morris pointed to a lineage of leaders that has now reached Sweepe, while Young has assumed that role for the women following the departure of several of the program's most successful runners.
"They have expectations. They have standards," Morris said. "Any success we've had has really just been building on the shoulders of giants. It's just passing it down."
That standard has helped CSU Pueblo establish itself as a consistent presence on the national stage.
The Pack women will attempt to qualify for Nationals for a sixth consecutive season, while the men are pursuing their third national championship appearance in four years.
First Look at December's Championship Course
Saturday's meet also carries added significance because of the venue.
Rim Rock Farm will host the NCAA Division II National Championships on Dec. 4, providing CSU Pueblo an opportunity to learn the course before potentially returning with a championship on the line.
Morris said one of the primary goals of the opener will be evaluating the Pack's one-through-five split and identifying how his runners handle different sections of the unfamiliar course.
"We haven't been on this course yet," Morris said. "We'll be able to check the speed changes and those things, so when we come back, we can practice for them."
The 2026 campaign will be slightly longer than a traditional cross country season because of the NCAA Fall Championships Festival, making patience throughout the early portion of the schedule especially important.
For Morris, the ThunderWolves don't need to be at their best on Sept. 5.
They need to be at their best when championships are decided.
"Your instinct is to try to come out of the gate hot, but the reality is, especially in these festival years, it's really who's good in November and December," Morris said.
Saturday will provide Morris and the Pack with their first set of answers.
The ultimate goal is to be back at Rim Rock Farm three months from now.
