Saint John's cross country opens its 2026 season at the Division II Augustana Twilight at 9:15 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4, at Yankton Trail Park in Sioux Falls, S.D. – Live Results | Live Video

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's returns four of its top-five runners from a team that finished 13th out of 31 schools at the NCAA Regional in 2025. Senior Cole Stencel (Mapleton, Minn./Maple River) returns for his senior season after becoming the first Johnnie since 2015-16 to qualify for the NCAA Championships in cross country, indoor and outdoor track in the same academic year in 2025-26. The College Sports Communicators Academic All-American finished 148th out of 291 runners at the NCAA cross country Championships, was crowned an indoor All-American with an eighth-place time in the mile in March and 16th to earn second-team All-American honors in the 1,500 meters in May. He is a five-time MIAC champion, including two each indoors (1,000 meters and mile) and outdoors (1,500 meters and 5,000 meters) this past spring.

Stencel led the Johnnies with an All-Region (top 35) performance of 23rd place – out of 214 runners – with an 8k time of 25:31 at the NCAA  Regional. Eamon Cavanaugh '25 – SJU's new assistant coach – was next in 68th (26:17), followed by three Johnnies in succession: senior Vincent Kaluza (Cold Spring, Minn./Rocori) in 87th (26:44.1), senior Jacob Malecha (Lonsdale, Minn./New Prague) in 88th (26:44.7) and senior Lars Molenkamp (Almere, Netherlands/Oostvaarders College) in 89th (26:45.3).

WHO WILL BE THERE: The Johnnies and host Vikings are scheduled to be joined Friday night's 5k race by Allen County C.C. (Kan.), NAIA Bellevue (Neb.), Bethany Lutheran, NAIA Briar Cliff (Iowa), Buena Vista (Iowa), NAIA Concordia (Neb.), Division II Concordia-St. Paul, NAIA Dakota State (S.D.), NAIA Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.), NAIA Dickinson State (N.D.), NAIA Doane (Neb.), Gustavus Adolphus, Division II Jamestown (N.D.), NAIA Midland (Neb.), Division II Minnesota-Crookston, Division II MSU-Mankato, NAIA Morningside (Iowa), NAIA Mount Marty (S.D.), Nebraska Wesleyan, Division II Northern State (S.D.), North Iowa Area C.C., NAIA Northwestern (Iowa), Providence (Manitoba), Saint Mary's, Division II Sioux Falls (S.D.), Division I South Dakota, Division I South Dakota State, Southeastern C.C. (Iowa), Division II Southwest Minnesota State, NAIA Waldorf (Iowa), Division II Wayne State (Neb.) and Division II Winona State.

REGIONAL RANKINGS: The Johnnies were listed at seventh in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association's (USTFCCCA) preseason North Region rankings.

1. Wisconsin-La Crosse
2. Wisconsin-Stevens Point
3. Wisconsin-Platteville
4. St. Olaf
5. Wisconsin-Stout
6. Milwaukee School of Engineering (Wis.)
7. SJU
8. Wisconsin-River Falls
9. Wisconsin-Eau Claire
10. Wisconsin-Whitewater 

THE REST OF THE SCHEDULE: The Johnnies follow Friday night's season opener by hosting the annual Toni St. Pierre Invitational two weeks later (Sept. 18) at River Oaks G.C. in Cold Spring. A trip to Carleton Oct. 3 for the Running of the Cows precedes a busy Oct. 17, in which SJU splits for two races: the CSB+SJU Autumn Classic in Cold Spring and Linfield's George Oja Invitational in Salem, Ore. SJU then makes three trips to Northfield over a span of four weeks. The Johnnies compete at the MIAC Championship on Halloween at St. Olaf and hosts the annual Fall Finale Nov. 6. The NCAA North Regional is Nov. 14 at St. Olaf and the 2026 NCAA Division III Championships are the following Saturday – Nov. 21 – at Carleton.