Completed Event: Cross Country at George Kyte Classic on August 30, 2025 , , M: 3rd out of 13 | W: 6th out of 10
XC
at George Kyte Classic
M: 3rd out of 13 | W: 6th out of 10
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Photo by: Sam Kuzminski
Training forms better bond for XC season
9/8/2021 9:00:00 AM | Cross Country, Paul Coro
Slattery moves GCU program ahead after disruptive COVID-19 year
Cross country is an accumulation of individual results that come from team training and bonding.
With the COVID-19 disruptions and delays of last season, Grand Canyon did not have the chance to do the latter. The Lopes' paths from the start line to finish line may waver but their bond will not this season after resuming preseason training camp last week in Flagstaff, Arizona.
The GCU runners navigated hiking underground in the Lava Caves, partnered on scavenger hunts in Flagstaff and cooked meals together before this season's team ran together for the first time Saturday. The Lopes have the next eight weeks to build into the team they want to be for the WAC Championships.
"I didn't really realize how important the training camp was until we didn't have it last year," GCU seventh-year head coach Sara Slattery said. "We had eight freshman women come in last year during COVID and it was really hard not having a time when they got to understand what expectations were and meet their teammates and get to know them well. The week was really good for them and the men as well."
The GCU men's side returns last season's top performer, Joseph Skoog, who is a third-year freshman athletically because he redshirted 2019 and gets a COVID eligibility waiver for last season. Skoog finished sixth at WAC Championships and missed a NCAA Championships trip by one spot.
"He definitely has the potential to make nationals," Slattery said. "Those guys seeing what he did, they want to do the same thing. That's a big goal we have as a team – to make a team to nationals. I don't know if that's going to happen this year, but I think it's something we want to do in the next two years."
Slattery her deepest squad yet with juniors Jacob Lewis, Landon Rast and Rylan Stubbs teaming with senior Blake Bennett and Cannon Angotti and Braedon Palmer, who will repeat freshman seasons. A true freshman, Roshan Tinoco-Miranda from Rio Rico, Arizona, comes aboard to help.
When Skoog and Lewis could not compete in the season opener, Slattery said the team was equipped for it.
"We have seven men who can step in their place that are a tight squad," Slattery said. "In the past, if we were missing our top two, it would kill us but we have a really strong group of men."
Lewis and Bennett made leaps into the top 20 at WAC Championships, where the GCU men placed third in a spring when Bennett challenged the program's 5,000-meter record. Bennett trained at altitude this summer to come in strong, much like Stubbs did in his first healthy summer.
"Rylan is someone who always steps up and performs at big meets," Slattery said. "We're excited about him."
Rast, the WAC runner-up in steeplechase this year, also trained at high altitude this summer and is becoming a team leader. He opened the season as the team's top finisher in sixth place at the George Kyte Classic, where Bennett and Angotti also were in the top 10.
Palmer, whose father, Matt, played GCU baseball, finished fourth in the 1,500-meter run at the WAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships and set 1,500- and 5,000-meter freshman records to move toward the team's pack.
"We have a really solid group overall," Slattery said. "It's hard to tell who's going to be in what position. They really key off each other and elevate each other as a group."
The women's team loses key seniors, but Slattery said the Lopes' young talent has a chance to surpass what has been done in the program.
"The key is that consistency over time," Slattery said. "These girls can do as much or more than those girls if they put the time in. They have the talent to do it. There are some girls who can really make an impact right away. They put in a good summer and they're motivated to succeed, push each other and motivate each other."
The program's fresh faces include juniors Kendall Drisko and Andrea Demko. Drisko ran at CSU Chico two years ago before transferring to GCU for academic reasons and joining the GCU Running Club. Her work there earned a spot on the Lopes' NCAA roster. Demko transferred from Penn State after competing at a GCU track meet in the spring.
"She is our only runner who has been to nationals and is back from hamstring injuries," Slattery said. "She can bring wisdom to this team that those girls don't have and she's getting stronger every week so I'm excited about her."
Senior Ana Alvarez Tostado, from Tucson, Arizona, and redshirt freshman Hana Hall, from Flagstaff, Arizona are the top returners after Alvarez-Tostado took 24th at WAC Championships last season.
Redshirt freshman Stefana Purkovic has been battling injuries for her first two years after coming from Phoenix North Canyon High School. The former Arizona prep runner-up has been healthy for seven months.
Redshirt freshman Halle Jenkins and sophomore Niki Hemmerlin, a Mesa Red Mountain High School graduate, also are retuning stronger with this year's dedication in and out of season.
Drisko was the top finisher at the season-opening George Kyte Classic, but a pack of Alvarez-Tostado, Jenkins, Hemmerlin and freshman Emma Summers were right behind her.
"It's been a long break and I'm really excited," Slattery said. "Having this first week of the year already felt so much better than a year ago. Everybody is excited and looking forward to the season."
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With the COVID-19 disruptions and delays of last season, Grand Canyon did not have the chance to do the latter. The Lopes' paths from the start line to finish line may waver but their bond will not this season after resuming preseason training camp last week in Flagstaff, Arizona.
The GCU runners navigated hiking underground in the Lava Caves, partnered on scavenger hunts in Flagstaff and cooked meals together before this season's team ran together for the first time Saturday. The Lopes have the next eight weeks to build into the team they want to be for the WAC Championships.
"I didn't really realize how important the training camp was until we didn't have it last year," GCU seventh-year head coach Sara Slattery said. "We had eight freshman women come in last year during COVID and it was really hard not having a time when they got to understand what expectations were and meet their teammates and get to know them well. The week was really good for them and the men as well."The GCU men's side returns last season's top performer, Joseph Skoog, who is a third-year freshman athletically because he redshirted 2019 and gets a COVID eligibility waiver for last season. Skoog finished sixth at WAC Championships and missed a NCAA Championships trip by one spot.
"He definitely has the potential to make nationals," Slattery said. "Those guys seeing what he did, they want to do the same thing. That's a big goal we have as a team – to make a team to nationals. I don't know if that's going to happen this year, but I think it's something we want to do in the next two years."
Slattery her deepest squad yet with juniors Jacob Lewis, Landon Rast and Rylan Stubbs teaming with senior Blake Bennett and Cannon Angotti and Braedon Palmer, who will repeat freshman seasons. A true freshman, Roshan Tinoco-Miranda from Rio Rico, Arizona, comes aboard to help.
When Skoog and Lewis could not compete in the season opener, Slattery said the team was equipped for it.
"We have seven men who can step in their place that are a tight squad," Slattery said. "In the past, if we were missing our top two, it would kill us but we have a really strong group of men."
Lewis and Bennett made leaps into the top 20 at WAC Championships, where the GCU men placed third in a spring when Bennett challenged the program's 5,000-meter record. Bennett trained at altitude this summer to come in strong, much like Stubbs did in his first healthy summer.
"Rylan is someone who always steps up and performs at big meets," Slattery said. "We're excited about him."
Rast, the WAC runner-up in steeplechase this year, also trained at high altitude this summer and is becoming a team leader. He opened the season as the team's top finisher in sixth place at the George Kyte Classic, where Bennett and Angotti also were in the top 10.
Palmer, whose father, Matt, played GCU baseball, finished fourth in the 1,500-meter run at the WAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships and set 1,500- and 5,000-meter freshman records to move toward the team's pack.
"We have a really solid group overall," Slattery said. "It's hard to tell who's going to be in what position. They really key off each other and elevate each other as a group."
The women's team loses key seniors, but Slattery said the Lopes' young talent has a chance to surpass what has been done in the program.
"The key is that consistency over time," Slattery said. "These girls can do as much or more than those girls if they put the time in. They have the talent to do it. There are some girls who can really make an impact right away. They put in a good summer and they're motivated to succeed, push each other and motivate each other."The program's fresh faces include juniors Kendall Drisko and Andrea Demko. Drisko ran at CSU Chico two years ago before transferring to GCU for academic reasons and joining the GCU Running Club. Her work there earned a spot on the Lopes' NCAA roster. Demko transferred from Penn State after competing at a GCU track meet in the spring.
"She is our only runner who has been to nationals and is back from hamstring injuries," Slattery said. "She can bring wisdom to this team that those girls don't have and she's getting stronger every week so I'm excited about her."
Senior Ana Alvarez Tostado, from Tucson, Arizona, and redshirt freshman Hana Hall, from Flagstaff, Arizona are the top returners after Alvarez-Tostado took 24th at WAC Championships last season.
Redshirt freshman Stefana Purkovic has been battling injuries for her first two years after coming from Phoenix North Canyon High School. The former Arizona prep runner-up has been healthy for seven months.
Redshirt freshman Halle Jenkins and sophomore Niki Hemmerlin, a Mesa Red Mountain High School graduate, also are retuning stronger with this year's dedication in and out of season.
Drisko was the top finisher at the season-opening George Kyte Classic, but a pack of Alvarez-Tostado, Jenkins, Hemmerlin and freshman Emma Summers were right behind her.
"It's been a long break and I'm really excited," Slattery said. "Having this first week of the year already felt so much better than a year ago. Everybody is excited and looking forward to the season."
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