ASHLAND — The Southern Oregon University 19th-ranked women's and 22nd-ranked men's cross country teams make their 2025 debuts Saturday at the Simpson Invitational in Cottonwood, Calif. 

Last year, the Raider women turned out their sixth consecutive runner-up finish at the Cascade Conference Championships en route to their 10th straight appearance at the NAIA Championships where they placed 16th. SOU produced a trio of both All-CCC and All-America performers in Alyssa Johnson, Fiona Fraser, and Cammeo Ramirez.

Three years removed from their first-place finish at the CCC Championships and 9th-place showing at the national meet, the Raider men have finished in 5th place in consecutive conference championships meets, failing to advance a team to the NAIA Championships. Last year, senior Jalen Griego was the only qualifier sent to Missouri after his 11th-place All-CCC finish at the conference championships. 

In his 15th year as head coach, Grier Gatlin signed a group of new talent to counterbalance the losses of Fraser, Ramirez, and Griego. "Half of our team is new," said Gatlin. "We have eight frosh and two transfers, so it will take some time to adapt to one another. I think both teams are talented and if we stay healthy, can be really good by the championship portion of the season."

Over half of the team is underclassmen. There are no seniors on either roster. 

The Raider women were fourth in the Cascade Conference cross country preseason coaches' polls behind No. 12 College of Idaho, No. 16 Lewis-Clark State, and No. 20 Eastern Oregon. College of Idaho has won the last six conference championships on the women's side.   

The men were fifth behind No. 9 Corban, No. 8 College of Idaho, No. 11 Eastern Oregon, and No. 15 Lewis-Clark State. College of Idaho is the defending NAIA Champions. 

The men's 8K begins Saturday at 10 a.m. and the women's 6K starts at 11 a.m. Other teams in attendance will include Oregon Tech, Simpson, and Shasta. 

Top Men's Returners: Last year, Mason Weisgerber missed out on the national meet after falling out of the top-15 at the conference meet, leaving something to be desired considering the then-sophomore finished eighth place at the CCC Championships and 51st at the NAIA Championships his freshman year. Since then, Weisgerber showed he's one of the top performers in the NAIA with a standout track season where he finished eighth and became an All-American in the 5K. On the track, he ran personal bests of 14:15.92 for 5,000 meters (that's a blistering 4 minutes 35 seconds per mile) and 3:56.77 for 1,500 meters. In 2024, he ran a season best of 25:08.5 for 8K in an 18th-place finish at the George Oja Invitational. 

Logan Huffman is the only other returning scorer for the Raiders from last year's conference meet. He finished fourth for the men, placing 49th as a true freshman in 27:13.2 (8K). The Medford product ran a personal best of 26:54.2 at the George Oja Invitational. 

Trenton Abraham and Hayden Roth are another duo looking to make an impact for SOU. Since they joined the program in 2023, Abraham has run 15:33.29 for 5K and 27:07 for 8K, while Roth has run 15:36.05 and 26:42 for the same distances. 

Men's Newcomers to Watch: To alleviate the burden of solo front-running for Weisgerber, Gatlin brought in Carter Stedman, a junior transfer from Northwest Nazarene boasting personal bests of 3:53.43 (1,500), 14:41.94 (5K), 24:44 (8K, XC), and 30:55.85 (10K). Last cross season, he finished 19th at the GNAC Championships and 49th at the NCAA Division II West Region Championships. Since reporting to Ashland, the Roseburg native looks to be in prime shape and should be considered one of the top talents in the conference.   

The Raiders also bring in two star freshmen from the Willamette Valley in Gus Blank (McMinville) and Josh Hepner (Portland). In the 2025 track season, Blank earned a fourth-place finish at the OSAA 6A State Championships in the 800 and recorded personal bests of 1:53.68 (800), 3:54.38 (1,500), and 15:26.69 (5K). On the grass, he finished 104th at the state meet. In 2024, Hepner earned a 16th-place finish and tied his 5K personal best at the OSAA 6A Cross Country State Championships in 15:44. Last spring, he produced 11th and eighth-place finishes in the 800 and 1,500 at the 6A state meet. Hepner's personal bests include 1:54.6 (800), 3:54.15 (1,500), and 8:42.03 (3K). 

Top Women's Returns: Alyssa Johnson just might be the face of the Cascade Conference for the next two years. She's the top returner after a runner-up finish to College of Idaho senior Kahea Figueira at last year's conference championships, which preceded a 32nd-place finish at the NAIA Championships for her first NAIA All-America honor.

Last spring, she was the highest finisher for Cascade Conference cross country-competing teams at the NAIA Track and Field National Championships, where she became a two-time All-American in the 5K and 10K. Notably, she edged out CI's Figueira in the 5K, and her 10K time of 35:43.62 would have earned her first place in the previous two national meets in Marion, Ind.  

Mercedes Harms and Ashley Jentzsch are a pair of scorers from last year's 16th-place nationals team. Harms placed 34th and Jentzsch 36th at the CCC Championships. Both runners improved last track season, setting personal bests in the 5K. 

Women's Newcomers to Watch: Half of the women's team are freshmen, which makes the addition of Oregon State University transfer Sophia Stubblefield that much more valuable. The 2022 Phoenix High graduate competed only a handful of times for the Beavers, running 22:58 (6K) and 18:47 (5K) on the grass. At Phoenix, she finished runner-up in the OSAA 4A State Cross Country Championships her senior year and ran a 5K personal best of 18:25. Her track PBs include 2:24.74 (800), 4:50.86 (1,500), and 10:15.21 (3K). 

Emily Picard, a 2025 Madras High grad, is coming off a track season that culminated with first- and fourth-place finishes at the OSAA State Championships in the 1,500 (4:46.57) and 3K (10:32.34). Last cross country season, she won the 4A-2 Tri-Valley Conference Championships in a 5K personal best of 18:49 and finished seventh in the OSAA 4A State Championships. 

Alaina Casady is another frosh looking to make an immediate impact for the Raider women. She finished second in the OSAA 4A State Championships with a personal-best time of 18:52 in the 5K. Last track season, she also turned out top-ten finishes at the state meet, claiming sixth in the 3K (10:38.92) and ninth in the 1,500 (4:53.5).