Ferris State Cross Country Teams Open Season With Dominant Showing In Ray Helsing Bulldog Invite

Coach Jared Kelsh Interview & Highlights 
Brendan Cairney Interview 
Danae Feldpausch Interview 

Big Rapids, Mich. - In its first races of the 2023 fall season, the Ferris State University men's and women's cross country teams swept the team and individual titles in the 48th annual Ray Helsing Bulldog Invitational on Saturday (Sept. 9) at FSU's Katke Golf Course.

The women's team started the morning with a dominant performance in the 5,000-meter opening race.

The Bulldogs won as a team with a perfect score of 15 points, scoring all five top finishing positions as well as finishing in the top 13 spots in the race.

Junior Danae Feldpausch took the individual title with a final time of 19:09.9 overall. Fellow junior Becci Castillo crossed the line in second with a time of 19:21.9 followed by sophomore Whitney Farrell with a 19:26.3 third-place time. Fellow juniors Hanna Brock and Melanea Strauss placed fourth and fifth for Ferris State with times of 19:36.9 and 19:46.3, respectively.

"It was really great to be back and feel great," Feldpausch said. "Our team is so fit and so fast. I was super pumped to run with my team and have a good time."

On the men's side, the Bulldogs followed suit with a perfect score of 15 in the 8,000-meter to defeat Alpena Community College in head-to-head competition. Ferris State's current roster also had the opportunity to compete against former Bulldog competitors from the years 2018 to 2022, who raced in the event unattached.

For Ferris State, it was junior Brendan Cairney who took first with one of the fastest times in recent years at the event with a 26:09.3 overall. Noah Griffith finished in the runner up spot with a time of 26:36.77 followed by last year's event winner Brandon Wirth in fourth. Sophomore Ryan Ososki finished fifth in 26:43.9 with freshmen Caleb Branch rounding out the Bulldog scoring in sixth with a final time of 26.45.8.

"It was a great day outside," Cairney said. "Bulldog (Invite) is all about running with your teammates and pushing each other. We broke the rust off our legs and we're ready to get the season going."

Both men's and women's squads will return to racing on Friday, Sep. 15, at the Spartan Invite in East Lansing.