When faced with her final two races as a college athlete, Colorado School of Mines senior Jenna Ramsey-Rutledge decided to go out in true Oredigger style — securing a piece of precious metal.
On May 22, Ramsey-Rutledge won the silver medal in the women’s 10K race at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships, following up on her individual national championship in the women’s 5K at March’s indoor nationals.
Overall, Ramsey-Rutledge and her fellow Orediggers earned four medals and eight podium spots over the May 22-24 meet.
Steeplechase runners Max Bonenberger and Emily LaMena secured back-to-back bronze medals in the men’s and women’s events, respectively, and Logan Bocovich also earned bronze in the men’s 10K race.
Additionally, several other Orediggers earned national honors for their Top 25 finishes at the meet.
Overall, with 13 men and nine women competing in 25 events, the Mines teams placed 13th and 14, respectively, at the national meet in Pueblo.
Ramsey-Rutledge and other Orediggers helped the Mines teams get off to a strong start May 22, as Ramsey-Rutledge secured her silver in the women’s 10K.
Meanwhile, Bocovich and teammates Jeremiah Vaille, Paul Knight, Braden Struhs and Loic Scomparin all competed in the men’s 10K.
Along with Bocovich’s third-place finish, Vaille was eighth; Knight, ninth; Struhs, 12th; and Scomparin, 18th.
Meanwhile, in the field events, Mines’ graduate transfer Holden Murphy took fifth in the men’s hammer throw. He threw 61.54 meters on his first attempt and then 62.20 meters on his second — enough to close out his college career on the national podium.
On the second day of competition, steeplechasers Bonenberger and LaMena got a chance to shine. LaMena, a freshman, ran the event in 10:23.94, which is only two seconds off her own program record at sea level.
Then, for the men’s event, Alex Shaw secured 10th place behind Bonenberger.
Likewise, Mines’ Everett Delate ran 13.92 in the 110-meter hurdles’ preliminaries. While he was bumped from the finals, his time was still fast enough to secure 10th place and second-team all-America status.
Fellow Oredigger Kitt Rupar also took 17th in the women’s discus, and the following day, finished 16th in women’s shot put.
Along with Rupar’s performance in the shot put, the final day of competition was a notable one for several Orediggers.
Ramsey-Rutledge took fifth in the women’s 5K race to pair a podium finish with her silver medal in the 10K race.
Then, Mines’ Tim Thompson also closed out his season on the national podium after taking seventh place in the men’s 800-meter race. He technically crossed the line in eighth place at 1:50.98, however a disqualification ahead of him bumped him up to seventh.
Additionally, Scomparin and teammate Dawson Gunn finished 10th and 22nd, respectively, in the men’s 5K race. Somparin was in 20th place about midway through the race, but was able to pass several runners during the race’s second half and earn second-team all-American honors.
While Ramsey-Rutledge and several other Orediggers have graduated or exhausted their eligibility, and thus are onto other pursuits, dozens of Mines distance runners will return in August to kick off the 2025 cross country season. Other athletes will plan to kick off their indoor track & field season in the late fall.
The 2025-26 cross country and track & field schedules hadn’t been posted as of May 28, but visit MinesAthletics.com to stay up-to-date on the teams over the summer.