Bradley Pink Classic
Friday, October 16
1:30pm at Peoria, Ill. (Newman Golf Course)
*Results will be posted after the conclusion of the meet*
The Eastern Illinois men's and women's cross-country teams return to action Friday, October 16, as the Panthers travel to Peoria, Illinois, to compete in the Bradley Pink Classic hosted by Bradley University.
The Panthers will join a competitive field featuring teams from across the country, including Indiana State, Southern Illinois Edwardsville, Southeast Missouri, Southern Indiana, Austin Peay, Texas Tech, Baylor's women's team, and several other collegiate programs.
The meet will take place at Newman Golf Course, with the competition scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m. Starting with the men that will run an 8,000-meter race and then the women will run a 6,000-meter race.
ON THE COURSE: The Panthers enter the meet looking to build on their performances at the ISU Nike XC Town Twilight on October 2, where both the EIU men's and women's teams finished eighth.
On the women's side, Ashlyn Denney led the Panthers at the ISU Nike XC Town Twilight, finishing 32nd overall in the 6K with a time of 23:05.5. Sophie Kruger followed in 39th at 23:13.9, while Chloe Proffitt finished 41st with a time of 23:18.3.
Denney has continued to be one of the Panthers' top runners during the 2026 season after opening the year with a strong performance at the Walt Crawford Open. She finished first for the Panthers and third overall in that meet's 5K.
For the EIU men, Cale Smith leads a group of experienced runners into Peoria. Smith finished 36th out of 100 runners at the ISU Nike XC Town Twilight with a time of 26:19.5. Following Smith was Jiberil Lesman crossing in 53rd place with a time of 26:41.5. After Lesman, rounding up the top 5 Panther finishers were Kasen Blain, Miteku Branch, and Phillip Canopy.
Miteku Branch is only a freshman for the EIU men's squad but has continued to finish in the top 5 finishers for EIU. Branch has proven himself that he can compete with some strong opponents and keep up with experienced runners.
LOOKING AHEAD: The Bradley Pink Classic will give both EIU squads another opportunity to compete against a strong field as the Panthers continue their preparation for the Ohio Valley Conference Championship, which is scheduled for October 30 at the Osage Centre in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.
