Mest finishes in top 50 at NCAA Mountain Regional - University of Montana Athletics

Friday, November 13

Albuquerque, N.M.

12:00 PM

Montana

NCAA Mountain Regional

Photo by: Lewis-Clark State

11/13/2026 2:16:00 PM | Men's Cross Country

Results

By: Montana Sports Information

Luke Mest put the finishing touch on a special season of cross country for the Montana men with a top 50 finish at the NCAA Mountain Regional in Albuquerque on Friday afternoon.

The All-Conference runner became the first Grizzly since Lynn Reynolds in 2010 to finish inside the top 50 at one of the most competitive meets in the entire country. Mest finished the 10K race with a time of 30:43.6.

He was the top finisher for a Grizzly team that finished 16^th in the overall field, just three points behind UTEP and 14 points behind Nevada in the team standings. New Mexico finished first with Colorado second. The two teams are also first and second in the NCAA Coache's Poll.

Texas Tech's Titus Kimaru won the meet with a time of 28:41.9.

Mest finishes his year as the top runner in all seven events for the Grizzlies. He earned All-Big Sky honors and picked up an individual win at the LC State Invite to go along with his top 50 regional finish.

Lane Krautschun was the second Grizzly to finish, placing 61^st overall with a time of 31:16.2.

"That was a strong finish for Luke in a big time regional race," head coach Doug Fraley said. "He and Lane Krautschun capped off what has been a tremendous season for these two young men."

The Grizzlies had three men finish from 91 to 101 in the final results. Carson Steckelberg was third across the line for Montana with a time of 32:29.6. Zachary Giesch finished next with a time of 33:17.9 and Keagen Crosby came in at 33:22.1.

It was a successful season for the Montana men as they continue to improve under Fraley and distance coach AJ Eckmann.

"Our team finish certainly was not what we were looking for, but it was a very successful season for our men's program," Fraley said.

MONTANA RESULTS
1. Luke Mest (30:43.6, 43^rd)
2. Lane Krautschun (31:16.2, 61^st)
3. Carson Steckelberg (32:29.6, 91^st)
4. Zachary Giesch (33:17.9, 100^th)
5. Keagen Crosby (33:22.1, 101^st)

TEAM SCORES
1. #1 New Mexico (35)
2. #2 Colorado (42)
3. #6 BYU (65)
4. #20 Northern Arizona (101)
5. Air Force (161)
6. Utah State (203)
7. Montana State (203)
8. Wyoming (245)
9. Utah Valley (273)
10. Colorado State (287)
11. Weber State (302)
12. Southern Utah (319)
13. New Mexico State (350)
14. Nevada (377)
15. UTEP (388)
16. Montana (391)