East Lansing, Mich. – Rutgers cross country closed out the Big Ten Championships Friday in East Lansing, Michigan. Micah Lawson and Kelseigh O'Neill continued to shine for the Scarlet Knights, again pacing the men's and women's squads, respectively in every race this season.
 
"Today was our best overall team showing at the Big Ten Championships," said Associate Head Coach Nicol Starkes. "On the men's side, we had our best 1-5 man spread of the season at 23 seconds. This was a big step in showing what our men can accomplish in the years to come.
 
"On the women's side, we didn't have our best day as a team but we had some solid performances. We are returning all the women for next year's team so we know we will be able to improve on today's performance, especially being only 31 points out of 13th place."
 
Prior to the 2025 championships, Rutgers had only placed ahead of two Big Ten teams on the men's side in the previous 11 seasons. This year, the Scarlet Knights finished ahead of four conference squads, while the five men's runners all placed higher than last year's top finisher.
 
"I'm very proud of how both teams competed," said Bobby Farrell, director of track and field & cross country. "Nicol and Lexi did a great job getting them prepared. The men stepped up with their best performance by as a team. With nearly everyone coming back, next year is only looking better. The women are close, we have a few more pieces coming next year and that should really elevate their performance."
 
The men's team earned an 11th-place finish in the standings ahead of Indiana, Illinois, Iowa and Nebraska, while the women's squad finished 16th overall.
 
Lawson led the Scarlet Knights all season long and continued that streak in East Lansing as he finished 56th with a time of 24:33.9. He was followed closely in a pack by Lucas Reguinho who ran 24:37.5 to finish 58th, Maan Patel in 62nd place in 24:41.4, Liam Tilton (63rd/24:43.6) and Stephen Kyvelos (70th/24:56.1).
 
The women's squad was once again led by O'Neil with a 44th overall finish in a time of 21:02.3. She improved 63 spots ahead of her time from a year ago as a freshman at the 2024 championships. Also adding to the scoring for the Scarlet Knights was Lorena David who has been one of the top finishers, running a time of 21:33.8 to place 76th. Maeli Gleason clocked a time of 22:17.5 (121st), followed by Carly Nicholson in 22:45.7 (141st) and Paige Boyce in 23:13.1 (151st).
 
The Scarlet Knights will take a two-week break from competition and continue to train for the 2025 NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional on Friday, Nov. 14 on the Lehigh campus in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
 
 
Team Scores
Men's Results – 8K
11. (15) Rutgers - 309
56. Micah Lawson - 24:33.9
58. Lucas Reguinho - 24:37.5
62. Maan Patel - 24:41.4
63. Liam Tilton - 24:43.6
70. Stephen Kyvelos - 24:56.1
 
Women's Results – 6K
16. (18) Rutgers - 429
44. Kelseigh O'Neil - 21:02.3
76. Lorena David - 21:33.8
121. Maeli Gleason - 22:17.5
141. Carly Nicholson - 22:45.7
151. Paige Boyce - 23:13.1