TAYLORSVILLE, Utah – Utah State's men's cross country team placed sixth, while the women took seventh, at the 2025 NCAA Cross Country Mountain Regionals at Salt Lake City Regional Athletics Park in Taylorsville, Utah, on Friday. Sophomore Joshua McKee led USU in the men's 10K race and junior Natalie Swain was the Aggies' top finisher in the women's 6K race. 
 
"I am super proud of how both teams ran today," said Artie Gulden, USU's director of track & field and cross country. "They ran inspired races, collectively worked together so well and did a great job running for each other." 
 
The Aggie men earned 186 team points to claim sixth place out of 19 teams in the 10K race. McKee set a career-best 10K finish and led all Aggie finishers for the fourth time this season with his 28th-place time of 31:02.0. USU's next four finishers crossed the line in succession, with sophomore Joshua Armstrong (31:16.5), graduate Logan Garnica (31:20.6), junior LJ Floyd (31:20.7) and sophomore Garrett Woodhouse (31:23.2) placing 38th through 41st, respectively. The Aggies collectively moved into the lead pack off the starting line, sitting only three points off of first place after the first checkpoint. USU finished with a five-man spread of 21.2 seconds, the narrowest of any team in the field. New Mexico's Habtom Samuel won the individual title with a time of 29:45.3, leading the No. 3 Lobos to the team title with 37 points. 
 
The Utah State women started off the morning with a seventh-place team finish in the 6K race, earning 206 points. Junior Natalie Swain paced the Aggies for the fifth time in as many races this season with a 29th-place finish, clocking in at 21:14.8. In her third career NCAA regional race, senior Sarah Ellis placed 36th with a time of 21:38.8. Junior Caroline Moon finished 41st with a time of 21:42.4, moving up 14 places over the last kilometer of the race. Junior Shelby Jensen clocked in at 21:50.1 to place 49th, and junior Brie Smith was the Aggies' final scorer with a 51st-place time of 21:51.0. No. 1 BYU's Jane Hedengren won the individual title with a time of 19:06.6, beating second-place runner Pamela Kosgei of No. 8 New Mexico by 42.1 seconds, while the Lobos ultimately won the team title with 45 points. 
 
"Unfortunately, the theme of the day for us is first out," said Gulden. "Natalie will be the first individual out of the NCAAs and it looks like our men will be the first team out of the NCAAs. They take 32 teams to the NCAA championships and we would be number 33. But, I could not be more proud of how these kids ran today." 
 
The NCAA Division I Cross Country Selection Show will be streamed on NCAA.com on Saturday, November 15, at 3 p.m. (MT). 
 
Fans can follow the Utah State cross country programs on X at USUTF_XC, on Facebook at USUTrack and on Instagram at USUTF_XC. Aggies fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program on X at USUAthletics or on Facebook at Utah State University Athletics. 
 
2025 NCAA CROSS COUNTRY MOUNTAIN REGIONALS | November 14, 2025 | Taylorsville, Utah 
Women's 6K Race Team Results 
1. No. 8 New Mexico – 2, 5, 10, 13, 15, (34), (38) – 45 
2. No. 1 BYU – 1, 3, 9, 16, 18, (19), (42) – 47 
3. No. 21 Northern Arizona – 4, 6, 17, 22, 27, (37), (39) – 76 
4. No. 17 Colorado – 14, 20, 21, 23, 28, (32) – 106 
5. No. 22 Utah – 8, 25, 26, 30, 31, (33), (44) – 120 
7. UTAH STATE – 29, 36, 41, 49, 51, (58), (82) – 206 
 
Women's Top-Five Finishers: 1. Jane Hedengren (BYU) – 19:06.6; 2. Pamela Kosgei (New Mexico) – 19:48.7; 3. Riley Chamberlain (BYU) – 19:52.8; 4. Hayley Burns (Northern Arizona) – 20:01.5; 5. Judy Rono (New Mexico) – 20:11.1. 
 
Utah State Women's Results: 29. Natalie Swain – 21:14.8; 36. Sarah Ellis – 21:38.8; 41. Caroline Moon – 21:42.4; 49. Shelby Jensen – 21:50.1. 51. Brie Smith – 21:51.0; 59. Camilla McKinstry – 22:11.8; 83. Liz Phillips – 22:44.3. 
 
Men's 10K Race Team Results 
1. No. 3 New Mexico – 1, 2, 4, 7, 23, (43), (52) – 37 
2. No. 10 BYU – 5, 6, 10, 21, 25, (27), (31) – 67 
3. No. 8 Northern Arizona – 11, 15, 17, 19, 20, (24), (45) – 82 
4. No. 6 Colorado – 12, 18, 22, 30, 32, (32), (36) – 114 
5. No. 28 Air Force – 3, 26, 29, 34, 35, (37), (58) – 127 
6. UTAH STATE – 28, 38, 39, 40, 41, (51), (79) – 186 
 
Men's Top-Five Finishers: 1. Habtom Samuel (New Mexico) – 29:45.3; 2. Evans Kiplagat (New Mexico) – 30:05.4; 3. Jayden Nats (Air Force) – 30:08.2; 4. Vincent Chirchir (New Mexico) – 30:08.9; 5. Tayvon Kitchen (BYU) – 30:09.6. 
 
Utah State Men's Results: 28. Joshua McKee – 31:02.0; 38. Joshua Armstrong – 31:16.5; 39. Logan Garnica – 31:20.6. 40. LJ Floyd – 31:20.7; 41. Garrett Woodhouse – 31:23.2; 51. Jayden Holdsworth – 31:37.5; 79. Joseph McKee – 33:06.1. 
 
-USU-