BILLINGS, Mont. — Senior Caleb Sarsland won the men's 8K and freshman Andriell Herrera turned in a personal-best performance for the women as Dickinson State continued its preparation for the championship portion of its season Friday at the Yellowjacket/Battlin' Bears meet at Amend Park.
Sarsland crossed the line first in 24:37.4 to give the Blue Hawks their first individual victory of the season, while the Dickinson State men placed fifth with 144 points. Herrera led the women with a 15th-place finish in 24:19.1, helping the Blue Hawks finish sixth with 138 points.
The victory continued a consistent start to Sarsland's senior campaign. He has finished inside the top 10 in all three of Dickinson State's competitions, opening the season with a seventh-place finish in the 5K at the Augustana Twilight Invitational before taking second in the 8K at the Marauders Invitational. Friday's victory marked his second consecutive top-two finish.
Sarsland entered the season following a 2025 campaign in which he placed third at the Frontier Conference Championships before finishing ninth at the NAIA National Championships to earn his first cross country All-America honor. His winning time Friday was 1.5 seconds faster than the 24:38.9 he recorded at last year's national meet, although the races were held on different courses.
Behind Sarsland, sophomore Thomas Oylear continued to provide consistency near the front of the Dickinson State lineup. Oylear finished 18th in 26:17.5, marking the third consecutive meet in which he has been the Blue Hawks' second finisher.
Sophomore Kyler Holinde continued his improvement in the 8K, placing 47th in a personal-best 28:11.4. Holinde has now lowered his best time in consecutive 8K races, improving by 39.14 seconds from his 28:50.54 at the Marauders Invitational. His latest performance is 1:31.0 faster than his previous collegiate best entering the season.
Senior Hudson Atkinson followed in 54th with a time of 28:49.0, while junior Brady Hoverson placed 71st in 29:55.1, lowering his previous personal best by 3.3 seconds. Freshman Tristan Rogers rounded out the men's lineup in 74th, completing his first collegiate 8K in 30:26.4.
On the women's side, Herrera delivered one of the most notable improvements of the meet. After running 26:41.05 in her first collegiate 6K at the Marauders Invitational on Sept. 11, Herrera lowered her time by 2 minutes, 21.95 seconds Friday to establish a new personal best.
The performance also marked a move up the Dickinson State lineup for Herrera, who was the team's third finisher at Marauders before leading the Blue Hawks in Billings.
Herrera became the third different Dickinson State woman to lead the team through its first three competitions. Junior Mia Handran paced the Blue Hawks at the season-opening Augustana Twilight Invitational, while senior Loli Jarrett led the team at Marauders.
Handran and Jarrett remained close behind Herrera on Friday, giving Dickinson State three runners among the top 26 finishers. Handran placed 21st in 24:37.5, while Jarrett finished 26th in 24:46.4.
Sophomore Kheyerah Bilger finished 59th in 28:31.7, followed by Jazmyn Carrywater in 62nd with a time of 29:14.3. Carrywater's performance marked her first verified collegiate cross country 6K. Sophomore Amanda Willis completed the women's lineup in 65th at 30:04.7.
With three competitions completed, Dickinson State will turn its attention to the Blazing Tiger NAIA Classic on Oct. 24 in Ashland, Nebraska. The meet will be the Blue Hawks' final scheduled competition before the Frontier Conference Championships on Nov. 7 in Billings.
