The Youngstown State men's and women's cross-country programs are back in action as they make the trip to South Bend, Ind., this Friday for the Joe Piane Notre Dame Cross Country Invitational.
Rare Invitation to the Blue Race
This year's meet will go down as a milestone for Youngstown State, as it marks the first time in program history that both the men's and women's teams received invitations to the National Blue Race held as part of the meet. This is the fourth time that the men have been invited, and the first time for the women.
Women's Preview
The women's 5K Blue Race will kick things off at 9:50 a.m.
The nine women competing for YSU are: Kenzy Beckett, McKinley Fielding, Carly Hall, Maggie Hopple, Molly Hopple, Lillian Katsaras, Jenna Razavi, Caleigh Richards and Megan Stafford.
Last weekend, the Penguins women placed second overall at the YSU Invitational XC Meet at the Gorby Family Championship Cross Country Course. The Penguins were led by McKinley Fielding, who paced the field with a course-record 5K time of 17:35.5, finishing first individually.  Caleigh Richards and Jenna Razavi finished closely behind Fielding, as Richards finished fourth with a time of 18:13.9, and Razavi finished fifth, clocking a time of 18:15.4. Freshman Maggie Hopple had a very strong performance, as she rounded out the top 10 with a time of 19:04.6. Lillian Katsaras finished closely behind Hopple in 12th with a time of 19:12.9, while Molly Hopple (17th – 19:27.5), and Kenzy Beckett (18th – 19:33.3) also finished inside the top 20. Carly Hall placed 21st, clocking a time of 19:42.5, while Megan Stafford finished 34th with a time of 20:31.1, and Claire Von Boetticher placed 40th with a time of 20:56.8.
The Penguins will be competing against notable Power Four schools South Carolina, Illinois, Kansas State, Purdue, Notre Dame and Iowa.
Men's Preview
The men's 8K Blue Race is scheduled to follow the women's race at approximately 10:30 a.m.
The nine men competing for YSU are: Owen Brady, Patrick Burgos, Ethan Cope, Brock Farris, Blaze Fichter, Beau Gorby, Josh Jones, Connor Shingleton and Sage Vavro.
Last weekend, the Penguins men placed first as a team at the YSU Invitational XC Meet at the Gorby Family Championship Cross Country Course. Like the women, the YSU men were led by a record-breaking performance by Patrick Burgos, who won the race individually with a new course-record 8K time of 25:18.7, over 19 seconds quicker than second place. Blaze Fichter was the next Penguin to finish, placing fourth with a time of 25:46.8. Owen Brady finished closely behind Fichter in fifth with a time of 25:53.6. Ethan Cope placed seventh with a time of 26:02.6, while Connor Shingleton finished ninth (26:13.87), Sage Vavro finished 10th (26:17.3), and Brock Farris finished 11th (26:22.7). Beau Gorby rounded out the group of Penguins as he placed 16th, clocking a time of 26:32.6.
YSU's men will be competing against Power Four schools Purdue, Illinois, Notre Dame, Michigan, and Iowa.
Penguins Sweep #HLXC Weekly Awards
The Penguins men and women achieved a clean sweep of this week's #HLXC awards, as Patrick Burgos was named both the Horizon League Men's Runner of the Week, as well as the Horizon League Men's Freshman of the Week after his victory, McKinley Fielding received Horizon League Women's Runner of the Week honors after her first-place finish, and Maggie Hopple was named the Horizon League Women's Freshman of the Week after her 10th-place finish last weekend in the women's 5K race.
Penguins Men Keep Suit at #8 in the Latest USTFCCCA Great Lakes Regional Rankings
The Youngstown State men remained in eighth during the latest release of the USTFCCCA Great Lakes Regional Rankings on Monday. YSU is the highest-ranked Horizon League school, with IU Indianapolis sitting at 12th and Oakland staying put at 15th. The Penguins are also the second-highest ranked school in the state of Ohio, only trailing Ohio State, which is ranked sixth.
Up Next
The Penguins will wrap up regular-season action in two weeks at the Pre-National Invitational, hosted by the University of Missouri. The Penguins will race at Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia, Mo.
For live updates and results throughout the 2025 season, follow @YSUTrackFieldXC on X.
