Trail Team Claims Third National Title

This past weekend, the Western Colorado University Trail Team took on the demanding red-rock terrain of Moab, Utah, at the U.S Collegiate Trail Running Championships. Western swept both podiums with Bayden Menton, Anders Hekkli, and Jackson Filmore securing the title for the men. On the women’s side, it was Skyley Dalziel, Lily Berwanger, and Journey Fleishman who swept the podium for the women’s collegiate title. This victory cements a 3-year winning streak for the Mountaineers on both the men’s and women’s side, affirming Western’s dominance in Collegiate Trail Running.

Strong Individual Finishes

The weekend also featured many strong individual finishes. Bayden Menton & Skyler Dalziel finished 4th and 10th, respectively, in the USATF Trail Half Marathon Championships. Five members of the team ran their longest race to date, and 10 athletes achieved personal bests on the marathon and half-marathon courses from previous years.

Sunday’s Marathon featured the highest finish of any Western Athlete at Moab, with Colin Cooper securing the win in 3:34:31. Teammates Ryan Welsh and Jacob Haltom rounded out the top 10 with a 7th and 10th place finish, respectively. Now the team is gearing up for their final race of the season at the Deadhorse Ultras before settling into training through the Gunnison winter.