COMING UP: at Simpson Invitational (West Valley HS, Cottonwood, Calif.), Saturday, 10 a.m.
 
LAST SEASON: Both OIT teams received votes in the NAIA Top-25 poll during the season, but were unable to secure an at-large bid to the NAIA Championships. The Lady Owls placed fifth overall at the Cascade Conference Championships, with the Hustlin' Owls finishing seventh – with the OIT women losing their No. 3 runner to graduation (Jane Kuebrich) and the OIT men losing four of their Top-7 finishers (Toby Ruston, Max Cox, Tychon Preston, Thomas Long) to graduation.
 
MEN'S PREVIEW: The Hustlin' Owls look to be much improved in 2025, anchored by junior Bryce Worrell, who was Tech's top finisher in four of the five events last year. OIT is excited about the development of sophomore Kai Miles, who had an outstanding freshman season, while juniors Braedan Doherty and Tucker Piper had quality track seasons after injuries derailed their sophomore cross country campaign. An outstanding recruiting class will tighten the Owls pack – as the freshmen trio of Ethan Krieger from Forest Grove, Elijah Zavala from North Medford and Daxton Wilson from Timberline in Boise, should all make an immediate impact.
 
WOMEN'S PREVIEW: The Lady Owls return four of their Top-5 runners from last season, including junior Charis Childers, who narrowly missed an at-large bid to the NAIA Championships. Twin sister Corinne Childers was Tech's No. 3 runner throughout last season, while both Chloe Crawford and Raleena Maxson made significant strides during the track season and will be key in the team scoring. Tech is excited for junior transfer, Saundra Parsons from Lane CC – who should be among the lead pack in every race –with a trio of freshmen, Aubrey Strang from Scappoose, Ava Shackleford from Yreka and Diana Olsen-Adams from Washington High in Tacoma, battling for the No. 6 and No. 7 scoring spots.
 
PRESEASON POLL: The Hustlin' Owls were picked eighth among the 12 teams in the CCC Preseason Poll – with five teams (No. 7 College of Idaho, No. 9 Corban, No. 11 Eastern Oregon, No. 15 Lewis-Clark State, No. 22 Southern Oregon) in the NAIA Preseason Poll. The Lady Owls were picked fifth in the CCC ranking, with four teams (No. 12 C of I, No. 16 LC State, No. 19 SOU, No. 20 EOU) in the national poll.
 
SCHEDULE: The Owls open with a 6,000-meter/8,000-meter event this weekend at Simpson University, before returning to California next week for the Humboldt Invitational in McKinleyville. Tech will compete three times in the Valley – at the Willamette Invitational, the George Oja Invite and the Bushnell Invite – before heading to Salem for the CCC Championships, hosted by Corban. The 2025 NAIA Championships will be hosted in Tallahassee, Fla.