Alahuhta leads Eagles men, finishes third, but BHSU wins overall in dual

By Ahlonte Hair

The CSC men’s and women’s cross country teams lost a home dual meet Friday against Black Hills State University, Spearfish, South Dakota.

“I thought the meet went well for our group. It was nice to be home having a dual meet,” CSC Head Cross Country Coach Luke Karamitros said. “I felt like the team improved as a whole from the last meet.”

Topi Alahuhta, freshman of Pine, Colorado, led the men’s team, placing third overall in 19:28.70, the second fastest time by a male runner in a 6-K race in CSC’s history. 

Other notable men’s runners were a pair of freshmen, Charles Fossey, of Rock Springs, Wyoming, and Kyle Shirley, of Queen Creek, Arizona, who placed fifth and eighth respectively.

Success is nothing new to Alahuhta this season. At the team’s Sept. 10 meet at the Gage McSpadden Memorial in  Spearfish, he placed fifth, edging out Black Hills State’s All-America runner Keith Osowski, by 7 seconds.

“I ran well on Friday. A long summer of running is paying off,” Alahuhta stated in an email. “I was very patient in the race and kicked at the right time. The entire team looked very good on Friday, and we are right on track to run even faster this fall.” 

On the women’s side, Josie Diffendaffer, freshman of Berthoud, Colorado, led the Eagles, placing fifth overall  in 20:46.48. Other notable runners included Lydia Peters, freshman of Sidney, who finished sixth, and Alissa Wieman, sophomore of Box Elder, South Dakota, who finished seventh.

The Eagles’ next competition is Oct. 15 when they travel to Colby, Kansas, for the Colby Community College Trojan Invite.