BILLINGS, Mont. – The Montana State University Billings men's and women's cross country teams returned to competition Friday, cohosting the Yellowjacket/Battlin' Bears Open with Rocky Mountain College at Amend Park.
 
The meet was a testament to the resilience of the Yellowjackets cross country programs, who were competing for the first time since withdrawing from the Whitman Open in Walla Walla, Washington following a single-car accident, which left six Yellowjackets injured. The team opted not to compete at that meet in respect for their injured teammates, but it was important for the Yellowjackets to return to competition this week on home soil, once again in honor of those teammates.
 
"I've said it so many times, but these athletes are very resilient," said MSUB cross country head coach Jon Woehl. "They've been bouncing back better than I could have expected. I'm very proud of the effort they've put in, and the care they've shown for one another. It's been nearly three weeks since we've last competed, and racing is important for our team. We're a young group, so getting more experience is good for us. It's been a very tough week, but just being able to have our teams go out and compete today was a nice way to cap it off.
 
To show their support of both teams, many members of the MSUB community made their presence known at Amend Park, bringing signs and making noise to support the Yellowjackets on the course. It marked another example of how the campus community has been rallying around the Yellowjacket cross country program throughout the past week, a sentiment Woehl hopes can continue as the teams continue to recover from last week's accident.
 
"It's been good to have all this support," said Woehl. "I'm thankful to the community and to everyone who has been reaching out. I hope everyone remembers that we're not all back yet, but hopefully we will be soon. Every one of us is still recovering in one way or another, and I know I won't feel 100% until every one of us is back and healthy."
 
Micah Strong would complete the race as the Yellowjacket women's top finisher, coming in 15^th with a time of 24:00.7. Shortly behind her finished fellow freshman Gracyn Rock, who finished 22^nd with a time of 24:23.7. MSUB's next finishers would finish back-to-back, with Toree Manning coming in 30^th with a mark of 24:35.2, and Ally Coey coming 31^st with a time of 24:41.3. Gabi Becker would round out MSUB's point earners with a 37^th place finish, crossing the finish line with a time of 25:07.9. Three more Yellowjacket women would compete and finish the race, with Chloe Shennum coming in 41^st with a time of 25:25.8, Emma Weaver coming in 58^th with a time of 27:04.1, and Angela Russo placing 61^st with a time of 27:17.4.
 
For the Yellowjacket men, Will Hyatt led the pack of MSUB runners with a 28^th place finish, finishing with a time of 26:37.8. Bruce Reed crossed the line in 56^th with a time of 28:01.3, while Hunter Bailey took 70^th with a time of 29:00.7.
 
MSUB's womens team would post a team score of 132, finishing in fourth place. The men would not post a team score.
 
The meet also marked the Yellowjackets final races before the GNAC Championships, hosted by MSUB at Amend Park. But with the conference meet ahead, Woehl and the Yellowjackets will continue to focus on the day-to-day, not just preparing for the meet but helping to support each other as the team remains on the road to recovery.
 
"I think we just need to take it one day at a time," said Woehl. "We don't want to look too far ahead, and for us at the moment it's just best to take what in front of us, and keep moving forward one day at a time."
 
THE BUZZ: Micah Strong and Will Hyatt were named the Intermountain Health Athletes of the Meet.
 
UP NEXT: The Yellowjackets are set to play host for the GNAC Men's and Women's Cross Country Championships, taking place on Saturday, October 25 at Amend Park. Meet Information will be made available on the GNAC Cross Country Championships Homepage, along with the both the men's and women's schedule pages. Live results will be available online here.