Saint John's cross country hosts its 30th annual Fall Finale at 4:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 6, near the water tower in Collegeville.

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's finished third out of 11 teams at the 2026 MIAC Cross Country Championships last Saturday (Oct. 31) at St. Olaf. Senior Cole Stencel (Mapleton, Minn./Maple River) won the race by 13 seconds, with a time of 24:56.1, to become the 11th Johnnie and 14th overall to win the MIAC individual championship. 

The host Oles claimed the team title with 36 points after four of their runners finished in the top 10. Carleton finished four points ahead of the Johnnies in second (88), while SJU totaled 92 total points. Macalester (115) was fourth, followed by Bethel (128) and Gustavus Adolphus (158). 

Senior Vincent Kaluza (Cold Spring, Minn./Rocori) was next behind Stence in 18th for the Johnnies, crossing the line in 26:10.3. Senior Jacob Malecha (Lonsdale, Minn./New Prague) took 23rd in 26:21.1 and freshman Quinn Carroll (West Fargo, N.D./Shanley) took 26th (26:33.6) in his first MIAC race.  

Freshman Tanner Long (Savage, Minn./Prior Lake) finished 39th (26:49.9), followed by Lars Molenkamp (Almere, Netherlands/Oostvaarders College) in 40th (26:50.4) and sophomore Erick Montalvo (St. Paul, Minn./Roseville Area) in 46th (26:54.5).

19 YEARS: Stencel claimed SJU's first individual crown since Chris Erichsen '08 - a 2023 inductee into the J-Club Hall of Honor - won in 2007 at the Como Park G.C. in St. Paul. 

SJU Cross Country MIAC Champions 
-John Cragg (1967, 1969, 1970) 
-Chuck Ceronsky (1968) 
-Joe Skaja (1971) 
-Dave Lyndgaard (1972) 
-Jim Gathje (1985) 
-Joe Bohlke (1988) 
-Jeb Myers (1996) 
-John Krueger (1998, 1999) 
-Nick Thoemke (2000) 
-Chris Erichsen (2007) 
-Cole Stencel (2026) 

REGIONAL RANKINGS: The Johnnies were listed at No. 8 in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) North Region rankings posted Tuesday (Nov. 3).

USTFCCCA North Region Rankings
1. Wisconsin-La Crosse (No. 5 nationally)
2. Wisconsin-Stevens Point (No. 7 nationally)
3. St. Olaf
4. Milwaukee School of Engineering, Wis.
5. Wisconsin-Whitewater
6. Wisconsin-Stout
7. Carleton
8. SJU
9. Wisconsin-River Falls
10. Wisconsin-Eau Claire

SJU's PARTICIPANTS: SJU's top-seven runners – Stencel, Kaluza, Malecha, Carroll, Montalvo, Molenkamp and McCoy - will not compete Friday in preparation for the NCAA North Regional, which is scheduled for noon next Saturday, Nov. 14, at St. Olaf.

LAST YEAR'S RACE: SJU won last year's three-team Fall Finale on Nov. 7 (2025). The Johnnies totaled 18 points, followed by Gustavus Adolphus (44) and Concordia-Moorhead (80).

Will Weber, an unattached runner from Division I Minnesota, won the 8k race in 25:11.

Junior Adam Marable (Crystal, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong) led the Johnnies in fifth place, first among Division III runners, in 27:55.

Sophomore John Steines (St. Paul, Minn./DeLaSalle) was seventh (28:27) and senior Jack Montgomery (Long Lake, Minn./Orono) followed in ninth (28:32).