Nick Gosnell: Richard Winger, he is running for District 4 for the County Commission as a Republican. He'll be on your ballot if you live in most of the city of Hutchinson here for the November 5th ballot, but there are parts of the city that have different County Commissioners, but it's mostly the city of Hutch. That's what the district is for, District 4. So I guess, Richard, most folks may know you from your days at Pools Plus. Why throw yourself into the deep end of the pool to run for County Commission?

Richard Winger: Well, when I was working at Pools Plus, you work some long hours and you, of course, are all over the state. But over the course of a number of years, I've had a number of people saying that I should run and to think about it at least. And so after I retired from Pools Plus, I went to actually went to work for the county in the maintenance department, worked there for about six months.&nbsp; My body was telling me I enjoyed the job, but my body was saying no. And so then I went to work for the college and I've been there almost a year now. And so I actually have more time available. I still love this city and this county. And so I thought it was the right time for me to put my hat in the ring. And I like I said, I've lived here since 1973.&nbsp; I've always enjoyed this city and the surroundings around it.

Nick Gosnell: All right. So a county commissioner, because they have a permanent administrator that they've hired, the day to day stuff anymore is usually done through the administrator's office or if it's a legal matter through the county counselor's office.&nbsp; The chief piece of what a county commissioner does is budgeting. What do you know about that and about how the county is doing it and anything that you might have to say regarding the county budget?

Richard Winger:&nbsp;Of course, you run a budget in your house, so you start there, hopefully when you're younger and stuff. Working through Pools Plus, we would do bids and quotes. And of course, you have a budget to do that and you have to be able to get it done under budget or at budget, but try not to go over the budget. As for the county, I would love to see the county be more effective and efficient. I know we were talking about at the forum forward thinking and sometimes that's great and in most cases it is, but there's times though where forward thinking means that you're going to need to raise taxes and that's not always a necessary thing. You can look at the budget and maybe skimp or not have something in a budget in this area that is not utilized like it used to be and use it for something else.

Nick Gosnell:&nbsp;Now, there is one area of the county that has been particularly used over the time since I've been here in Hutchinson. And just to remind folks, my official hire date was December 31st of 2019. I started in January of 2020, so immediately prior to the pandemic. So, the health department kind of got pushed to the front of the line a little bit during the COVID period, but they do a whole lot more than just the emergency stuff that happened during COVID. And I know that your wife worked at the health department for a long time, so you have at least a little bit of inside information on the workings of that. How important is the work of the health department?

Richard Winger:&nbsp;It's very important. It does a number of age groups from infants and toddlers all the way up to elderly people. It actually brings in a revenue stream. Most people don't realize that. They just think they use taxes to support it, but it actually does bring in a revenue stream. They do shots. Women's, infants, and children's department is very important for those young mothers with young children. I use it. I've used it since I was here. I got a TB test when I first went to work at McDonald's, so that tells you how long ago that's been. But I also go there for my shots. They work on, they have foot clinics for those people with diabetes and other things where they can't reach their feet anymore, so they help you take care of that.&nbsp; They do all kinds of things that most people don't realize, not just, you know, emergency care and things like that.

Nick Gosnell:&nbsp;Okay. There are a lot of areas of the county that, for want of a better way of putting it, are branch offices of the state.&nbsp; By that I mean, like your county treasurer's office is, generally speaking, locked in to do whatever the statute tells them to do as far as county treasurer is concerned. County appraiser is much the same way. The statute and the parameters within that kind of control what happens there.&nbsp; So, how much real change can you make in those departments that are basically controlled by things that were passed at a level higher than yours? And how much can you say, hey, listen, what can we do operationally here? Where does that line get drawn?

Richard Winger:&nbsp;Well, operationally, it would probably be the most area that we can control because it would incur, you know, the facility that the operations in, the people that work there, talking about if it's a mandated thing from the state, then there really isn't much you can do. The money is supposed to be allocated and used for that part, and so you really can't do a whole lot with that. That being said, if you have access to, you know, the House and Senate members at the capitol, you might be able to visit with them about some of those, you know, things that are being done and see if you can get them lowered.

Nick Gosnell:&nbsp;There will be two new members of the county commission for certain. Your race is one where both people would be new, and then there's another race that's where both people would be new. But three of the five county commissioners, at least in theory, assuming that there isn't a huge write-in vote in Hirst's district, will be ones that come back that are still there from before. So you have the three that have done it for a long time, or relatively, or that have done it before, and the two that have not done it yet. How do you persuade the majority to not just keep doing what they're doing?

Richard Winger:&nbsp;That's the point we were just kind of talking about. You have to have a quorum, I mean, of voters. And so there's five of us now, would be five of us. So you have to have a three to two vote or four one, or even five oh if it's unanimous. I'm one of those guys, I don't believe in kicking the can down the road, but I also am pretty persuasive when I'm visiting with somebody about something that needs to be done, and I feel strong about it. I can usually get my point across and my goal would be to convince the other commissioners that this is the way we need to go. I've also known a number of the commissioners for a while just through work, and I've worked for them and done things with them, volunteer and other things. So I think I can be a team player, but also not just sit on the bench and not participate either.&nbsp; I want to be one of those that would contribute.

Nick Gosnell:&nbsp;All right. So the big areas of the budget that are things that need to, the county needs to work through, public works is a huge part of the budget as far as dollars are concerned, but that's kind of another one of those areas where, for want of a better way of putting it, if the bridge needs fixed, the bridge needs fixed.&nbsp; So there's a lot of that that is difficult to do much about other than just be proper with maintenance and those sorts of things. How do you say to those folks the difference between we want to do maintenance now so that we have longest life that we possibly can for everything we have to, well, we don't have the budget to do everything all the time. It's something you had to deal with in maintaining things in the business you were in too, I suppose.

Richard Winger:&nbsp;Exactly. And I really, that's one of the things that I noticed when I first moved here. And even as a younger person, a lot of times things, the maintenance wouldn't get done and then it would be broke.&nbsp; And then it's like, okay, we have to fix it. And it's always easier to keep that car longer. If you do that, those minor details and oil changes and things early on, and it makes it last longer. So in the county, you just got to figure out the budget and do a timely schedule on different things. Most people don't see the infrastructure around the city. They just see the city unless you're out a farmer or you're driving out in the county for another reason.&nbsp; You don't see the roads, you don't see the bridges, and they are utilized a lot around this city. We have some great interstate or four lane highways now, but the county roads are still utilized a lot.

Nick Gosnell:&nbsp;Well, and so part of the constant maintenance is that the county commission has a certain number of lane miles. And I don't have the number off the top of my head. I apologize. Don Brittain will probably send me an email saying, it's this number. And that's fine, Don, go ahead and send it to me later. And I'll be sure that I know what it is. But there's a certain number of lane miles that you have to do each year to be able to get through the entire county over the course of several years. Because you can't, there's not an infinite amount of money. You can't do them all every year. So sometimes when budgets are tight, that's one of the things that gets cut back on is that maintenance stuff like we talked about. Are there other areas where the county could go, you know, maybe we don't do this, but we focus on the other things for the purposes of those folks outside of the city of Hutchinson, like we just talked about?

Richard Winger:&nbsp;Well, so there are, Don Brittain is great for that department. And there's 19 other department leaders, and they all work to keep their budgets within the limits that they're supposed to. I know like in roads and bridges, there's also where they go out and they do ditches and they do this or that with heavy equipment. And maybe it's one of those things where they can't do that because they need that money to go to a road. Maybe they have a bridge that had an accident on it and it damaged part of the bridge and that would have to come from that expense to be fixed.

Nick Gosnell:&nbsp;Again, Richard, if people want to find out more about you, what's the easiest way to find out more about your campaign or get a hold of you if they want to talk to you between now and election day?

Richard Winger:&nbsp;Well, I have my cell phone and I answer it.&nbsp; I've heard a few people that are running say that. So it's 620-664-0662. If I don't answer, pardon me, leave me a voicemail and I'll be glad to get back with you. I also have a website on Facebook that my wife put together. It's Winger for County Commission on Facebook. And then we also have an email. It's <a href="mailto:winglaf6@yahoo.com">winglaf6@yahoo.com</a>. That's W-I-N-G-L-A-F, the number six at yahoo.com. That's correct.

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 </figure>Nick Gosnell: Richard Winger, he is running for District 4 for the County Commission as a Republican. He'll be on your ballot if you live in most of the city of Hutchinson here for the November 5th ballot, but there are parts of the city that have different County Commissioners, but it's mostly the city of Hutch. That's what the district is for, District 4. So I guess, Richard, most folks may know you from your days at Pools Plus. Why throw yourself into the deep end of the pool to run for County Commission? Richard Winger: Well, when I was working at Pools Plus, you work some long hours and you, of course, are all over the state. But over the course of a number of years, I've had a number of people saying that I should run and to think about it at least. And so after I retired from Pools Plus, I went to actually went to work for the county in the maintenance department, worked there for about six months.&nbsp; My body was telling me I enjoyed the job, but my body was saying no. And so then I went to work for the college and I've been there almost a year now. And so I actually have more time available. I still love this city and this county. And so I thought it was the right time for me to put my hat in the ring. And I like I said, I've lived here since 1973.&nbsp; I've always enjoyed this city and the surroundings around it. Nick Gosnell: All right. So a county commissioner, because they have a permanent administrator that they've hired, the day to day stuff anymore is usually done through the administrator's office or if it's a legal matter through the county counselor's office.&nbsp; The chief piece of what a county commissioner does is budgeting. What do you know about that and about how the county is doing it and anything that you might have to say regarding the county budget? Richard Winger:&nbsp;Of course, you run a budget in your house, so you start there, hopefully when you're younger and stuff. Working through Pools Plus, we would do bids and quotes. And of course, you have a budget to do that and you have to be able to get it done under budget or at budget, but try not to go over the budget. As for the county, I would love to see the county be more effective and efficient. I know we were talking about at the forum forward thinking and sometimes that's great and in most cases it is, but there's times though where forward thinking means that you're going to need to raise taxes and that's not always a necessary thing. You can look at the budget and maybe skimp or not have something in a budget in this area that is not utilized like it used to be and use it for something else. Nick Gosnell:&nbsp;Now, there is one area of the county that has been particularly used over the time since I've been here in Hutchinson. And just to remind folks, my official hire date was December 31st of 2019. I started in January of 2020, so immediately prior to the pandemic. So, the health department kind of got pushed to the front of the line a little bit during the COVID period, but they do a whole lot more than just the emergency stuff that happened during COVID. And I know that your wife worked at the health department for a long time, so you have at least a little bit of inside information on the workings of that. How important is the work of the health department? Richard Winger:&nbsp;It's very important. It does a number of age groups from infants and toddlers all the way up to elderly people. It actually brings in a revenue stream. Most people don't realize that. They just think they use taxes to support it, but it actually does bring in a revenue stream. They do shots. Women's, infants, and children's department is very important for those young mothers with young children. I use it. I've used it since I was here. I got a TB test when I first went to work at McDonald's, so that tells you how long ago that's been. But I also go there for my shots. They work on, they have foot clinics for those people with diabetes and other things where they can't reach their feet anymore, so they help you take care of that.&nbsp; They do all kinds of things that most people don't realize, not just, you know, emergency care and things like that. Nick Gosnell:&nbsp;Okay. There are a lot of areas of the county that, for want of a better way of putting it, are branch offices of the state.&nbsp; By that I mean, like your county treasurer's office is, generally speaking, locked in to do whatever the statute tells them to do as far as county treasurer is concerned. County appraiser is much the same way. The statute and the parameters within that kind of control what happens there.&nbsp; So, how much real change can you make in those departments that are basically controlled by things that were passed at a level higher than yours? And how much can you say, hey, listen, what can we do operationally here? Where does that line get drawn? Richard Winger:&nbsp;Well, operationally, it would probably be the most area that we can control because it would incur, you know, the facility that the operations in, the people that work there, talking about if it's a mandated thing from the state, then there really isn't much you can do. The money is supposed to be allocated and used for that part, and so you really can't do a whole lot with that. That being said, if you have access to, you know, the House and Senate members at the capitol, you might be able to visit with them about some of those, you know, things that are being done and see if you can get them lowered. Nick Gosnell:&nbsp;There will be two new members of the county commission for certain. Your race is one where both people would be new, and then there's another race that's where both people would be new. But three of the five county commissioners, at least in theory, assuming that there isn't a huge write-in vote in Hirst's district, will be ones that come back that are still there from before. So you have the three that have done it for a long time, or relatively, or that have done it before, and the two that have not done it yet. How do you persuade the majority to not just keep doing what they're doing? Richard Winger:&nbsp;That's the point we were just kind of talking about. You have to have a quorum, I mean, of voters. And so there's five of us now, would be five of us. So you have to have a three to two vote or four one, or even five oh if it's unanimous. I'm one of those guys, I don't believe in kicking the can down the road, but I also am pretty persuasive when I'm visiting with somebody about something that needs to be done, and I feel strong about it. I can usually get my point across and my goal would be to convince the other commissioners that this is the way we need to go. I've also known a number of the commissioners for a while just through work, and I've worked for them and done things with them, volunteer and other things. So I think I can be a team player, but also not just sit on the bench and not participate either.&nbsp; I want to be one of those that would contribute. Nick Gosnell:&nbsp;All right. So the big areas of the budget that are things that need to, the county needs to work through, public works is a huge part of the budget as far as dollars are concerned, but that's kind of another one of those areas where, for want of a better way of putting it, if the bridge needs fixed, the bridge needs fixed.&nbsp; So there's a lot of that that is difficult to do much about other than just be proper with maintenance and those sorts of things. How do you say to those folks the difference between we want to do maintenance now so that we have longest life that we possibly can for everything we have to, well, we don't have the budget to do everything all the time. It's something you had to deal with in maintaining things in the business you were in too, I suppose. Richard Winger:&nbsp;Exactly. And I really, that's one of the things that I noticed when I first moved here. And even as a younger person, a lot of times things, the maintenance wouldn't get done and then it would be broke.&nbsp; And then it's like, okay, we have to fix it. And it's always easier to keep that car longer. If you do that, those minor details and oil changes and things early on, and it makes it last longer. So in the county, you just got to figure out the budget and do a timely schedule on different things. Most people don't see the infrastructure around the city. They just see the city unless you're out a farmer or you're driving out in the county for another reason.&nbsp; You don't see the roads, you don't see the bridges, and they are utilized a lot around this city. We have some great interstate or four lane highways now, but the county roads are still utilized a lot. Nick Gosnell:&nbsp;Well, and so part of the constant maintenance is that the county commission has a certain number of lane miles. And I don't have the number off the top of my head. I apologize. Don Brittain will probably send me an email saying, it's this number. And that's fine, Don, go ahead and send it to me later. And I'll be sure that I know what it is. But there's a certain number of lane miles that you have to do each year to be able to get through the entire county over the course of several years. Because you can't, there's not an infinite amount of money. You can't do them all every year. So sometimes when budgets are tight, that's one of the things that gets cut back on is that maintenance stuff like we talked about. Are there other areas where the county could go, you know, maybe we don't do this, but we focus on the other things for the purposes of those folks outside of the city of Hutchinson, like we just talked about? Richard Winger:&nbsp;Well, so there are, Don Brittain is great for that department. And there's 19 other department leaders, and they all work to keep their budgets within the limits that they're supposed to. I know like in roads and bridges, there's also where they go out and they do ditches and they do this or that with heavy equipment. And maybe it's one of those things where they can't do that because they need that money to go to a road. Maybe they have a bridge that had an accident on it and it damaged part of the bridge and that would have to come from that expense to be fixed. Nick Gosnell:&nbsp;Again, Richard, if people want to find out more about you, what's the easiest way to find out more about your campaign or get a hold of you if they want to talk to you between now and election day? Richard Winger:&nbsp;Well, I have my cell phone and I answer it.&nbsp; I've heard a few people that are running say that. So it's 620-664-0662. If I don't answer, pardon me, leave me a voicemail and I'll be glad to get back with you. I also have a website on Facebook that my wife put together. It's Winger for County Commission on Facebook. And then we also have an email. It's <a href="mailto:winglaf6@yahoo.com">winglaf6@yahoo.com</a>. That's W-I-N-G-L-A-F, the number six at yahoo.com. That's correct.Below is the audio interview.<div><iframe title="Richard Winger" allowtransparency="true" height="150" width="100%" style="border: none; min-width: min(100%, 430px);height:150px;" scrolling="no" data-name="pb-iframe-player" src="https://www.podbean.com/player-v2/?i=etgk2-1718497-pb&from=pb6admin&share=1&download=1&rtl=0&fonts=Arial&skin=60a0c8&font-color=&logo_link=episode_page&btn-skin=ff6d00" loading="lazy"></iframe></div>

Transcript: Richard Winger, County Commission 4

Nick Gosnell: Lindsey Hatfield, she is running as a Democrat for the County Commission District 4 seat, which is the seat that includes most of the city of Hutchinson. And good morning, Lindsey.

Lindsey Hatfield: Good morning, Nick. Thanks for having me.

Nick Gosnell: You bet. So first of all, for those folks that don't know you, who is Lindsey Hatfield? And why did you decide to run?

Lindsey Hatfield: I am a Reno County native. I was born and raised here, went to Bueller High School, graduated. Actually, I met my husband, I say this a lot, but I met him at the Hutchinson Mall about 20 years ago when the mall was a booming place to work. And he and I, excuse me, we moved away when I graduated and went to college. And then in 2018, after we had been married for some time and had a couple of kids, we decided to come back to Reno County to raise our kids and put down roots here because I loved growing up here. And I knew that this would be an amazing place to raise our family and my whole, the rest of my family, my mom and sisters are here. So that's why we came back. And since coming back, I've opened a small business. I own Salt City Scoops, which is a little food trailer that we run mostly in the spring and summertime. We sell ice cream cookie sandwiches. And I also work from home full time in property management. So I do have that full-time job. And then we do that Salt City Scoops on the side. And I'm PTO vice president. I got involved in my kids' school. They go to Allen STEM Magnet School. And we've just been really enjoying a calmer, wonderful way of life for our kids in Hutchinson because I loved growing up here.

Nick Gosnell: All right. So how does running for county commission help support that way of life?

Lindsey Hatfield: Well, the running for it does not support a calmer. It's a lot of work right now. But I knew when we moved back, I wanted to get involved. Part of my, I had some frustration with our town and our counties is the feeling that it's not progressing, that we are somewhat of a regressive county commission.&nbsp; And I feel like we need different leadership, younger leadership, people who have a different vision for Reno County, who are at a different place in their lives and really are going to be here for the rest of their lives. And so I knew I wanted to get involved. And to me, it's just about helping to create a community that I want to continue living in for the rest of my life.&nbsp; And I want my kids to put down roots and stay here as well.

Nick Gosnell: Economic development is such a big part of what every county wants to do. And yesterday was a massive day for Reno County economic development with the building of the power plant by Evergy.&nbsp; Now that has been proposed for 2030, they're going to start construction in 2027. And between the power that will be available and the water rights that are available in the city of Hutchinson, it seems like the county is primed for further economic development. How would you as a member of the county commission set policy to foster that and to keep that momentum going forward?

Lindsey Hatfield: Yeah, first of all, I was so excited. I got an email an hour before, well, I got it the night before, but I read it an hour before that press conference and I went over there. It was such an exciting press conference to be there live when it was announced. So how I would help foster that is economic development is such an important part of our community.&nbsp; And I would make sure that any, so any ideas that are brought forth to the county commission, we really are supporting. We're supporting places like our chamber of commerce and other programs in Hutchinson that are really doing the hard heavy lifting for economic development and making sure that we support them in any way that we can, because that is really economic development is the only way we're going to progress and move forward as a county.

Nick Gosnell: As I said to your opponent when I interviewed him earlier on this morning, no matter who wins, it looks like there's going to be two new county commissioners and three, I don't want to say old county commissioners, but three remaining county commissioners. That's it. So how do you persuade when a majority of the commission at least has pointed in a direction and now you, now you need to persuade at least one of them if you want to change the direction at all?

Lindsey Hatfield: Sure. I don't think of it so much as persuasion as just having a conversation and working with them and maybe getting them to understand where I'm coming from. Obviously when you work with anybody, it's a give and take, right? So I want to hear what they have to say and really take that in and, and, and discuss that. And I would hope that they would be willing to give the same back to me so that we could find common ground because really, I think we all probably share the same, what we want for Reno County, how we want it to be. It's just getting there and finding the way to that.

Nick Gosnell: The Reno County health department was put out front as all health departments across the state were during COVID. But the health department does a whole lot of things that, that have nothing to do with infectious disease. And when we're getting back to, I'm praying, normal life, at least closer to normal than we've been in the last five years, talk about the importance of supporting what they do, speaking generally, because the health department is one of the larger departments that the county actually has some oversight over in a way that they maybe don't the other ones that are just for want of a better way of putting it, branch offices of the state, like the treasurer and so on.

Lindsey Hatfield: Right. So that was really the catalyst for me running for this position was the fact that our incumbent, the person who's currently there, essentially felt like wanted to dismantle the health department. And, and, and to me, it's such a vital and important part of our community. As a kid, I got vaccinated there. And I know that it's the only place in Reno County that women can get access to WIC, women, infant and children, which is from pregnancy all through age five.&nbsp; It's extremely important. That's not all that they do, but it is the health of our community. It has to be a place for everyone in the county to be able to come and receive health services. And so that is our responsibility, not only to fund that, but to make sure that it continues and continues to help us have a thriving community.

Nick Gosnell: All right. The county commission, the basic function of it now, as opposed to maybe what it was 20, 30 years ago, now, now that they have a professional administrator, it isn't so much about the day to day deciding what the, uh, what, what check gets written today, as much as it is getting the general direction of the budget and the priorities for the county as a whole from a year to year basis. So what is your experience in that area of things in terms of budgeting and saying, okay, this is a good idea, but maybe not right now. Or this is an idea that we need to do now to set the, to set the pace for future years. How do you make those decisions? How does that go through your mind when you're making decisions for the short, medium and long term?

Lindsey Hatfield: Right. This is where I think my day job helps a lot because I work in property management or asset management. So you're dealing with an asset, a property and Reno County is also an asset, right? And so part of that is creating a budget for your year, looking at your income and your expenses. But a lot, a big part of asset management is not having deferred maintenance. So taking care of the little things, not putting a bandaid over something that's just going to cost you more money down the road. Um, so for me, I'm very comfortable creating budgets, working with budgets cause it's what I do in my day job. And it's really about planning for the big expenses.&nbsp; You're not going to have to replace your roof every year, but eventually you're going to need to replace your roof. You can't keep spending thousands of dollars, patching it and patching it and patching it when really you just need to replace it. So I have a lot of experience with that side sort of stuff with property management and, and I'm very comfortable with budgets.

Nick Gosnell: All right. And there are some areas, as I alluded to earlier, that are branch offices of the state, like the county treasurer basically has to follow whatever the statute says with regard to that county appraiser for all of the frustration that people have with their appraisals and the changes in that kind of stuff. Most of that is statutorily based and has to do with just comparables and those sorts of things.&nbsp; I've talked to the appraiser about that. So in those areas where you may not have a ton of ability to change what they do because the statute says what it says, well, how do you, how do you say to them, okay, yeah, we know you have to do this, but maybe you can do it in a different way, uh, in an effort to, to save the taxpayers money where it's even possible.

Lindsey Hatfield: I think you just hit the nail on the head. You say to them, I know you have to do this, but let's rethink this. Is there a different way that we can do this, hopefully to save people money? Uh, I mean, that's, that's getting into the nitty gritty of it. And I'm sure if I'm elected, um, you know, I'll have a lot of experience with that.&nbsp; But for me, it's all about trying to find new ways of doing things different than what we have been doing. Because to me, it feels like a lot of what we're doing is not helping us progress and move forward as a county. And we're just sort of stagnant and, and that's not my vision for the future.&nbsp; And I think a lot of people who live here, that's not our vision. We want to see people moving back to Reno County and not moving away. And that's what's been happening.&nbsp; So we just need new leadership with a vision who is willing to try something different than what we've been doing.

Nick Gosnell: All right. So how can folks find out more about your campaign and find out more about, uh, just how you plan to deal with issues? They can do so online, right?

Lindsey Hatfield: Yeah. I have a website <a href="http://voteforhatfield.com">voteforhatfield.com</a>. You can go there and you can find out all about me. You can also email me <a href="mailto:Hatfieldforcommissioner@gmail.com">Hatfieldforcommissioner@gmail.com</a>. I'm happy to answer any emails as well, and I live in Hyde Park. I have, I'm right across from the Hyde Park here or that little, you know, the grassy Hyde Park. So come over and say hi, if you want to, we've got all our scary Halloween decorations out right now.

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 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Nick Gosnell: Lindsey Hatfield, she is running as a Democrat for the County Commission District 4 seat, which is the seat that includes most of the city of Hutchinson. And good morning, Lindsey. Lindsey Hatfield: Good morning, Nick. Thanks for having me. Nick Gosnell: You bet. So first of all, for those folks that don't know you, who is Lindsey Hatfield? And why did you decide to run? Lindsey Hatfield: I am a Reno County native. I was born and raised here, went to Bueller High School, graduated. Actually, I met my husband, I say this a lot, but I met him at the Hutchinson Mall about 20 years ago when the mall was a booming place to work. And he and I, excuse me, we moved away when I graduated and went to college. And then in 2018, after we had been married for some time and had a couple of kids, we decided to come back to Reno County to raise our kids and put down roots here because I loved growing up here. And I knew that this would be an amazing place to raise our family and my whole, the rest of my family, my mom and sisters are here. So that's why we came back. And since coming back, I've opened a small business. I own Salt City Scoops, which is a little food trailer that we run mostly in the spring and summertime. We sell ice cream cookie sandwiches. And I also work from home full time in property management. So I do have that full-time job. And then we do that Salt City Scoops on the side. And I'm PTO vice president. I got involved in my kids' school. They go to Allen STEM Magnet School. And we've just been really enjoying a calmer, wonderful way of life for our kids in Hutchinson because I loved growing up here.Nick Gosnell: All right. So how does running for county commission help support that way of life? Lindsey Hatfield: Well, the running for it does not support a calmer. It's a lot of work right now. But I knew when we moved back, I wanted to get involved. Part of my, I had some frustration with our town and our counties is the feeling that it's not progressing, that we are somewhat of a regressive county commission.&nbsp; And I feel like we need different leadership, younger leadership, people who have a different vision for Reno County, who are at a different place in their lives and really are going to be here for the rest of their lives. And so I knew I wanted to get involved. And to me, it's just about helping to create a community that I want to continue living in for the rest of my life.&nbsp; And I want my kids to put down roots and stay here as well. Nick Gosnell: Economic development is such a big part of what every county wants to do. And yesterday was a massive day for Reno County economic development with the building of the power plant by Evergy.&nbsp; Now that has been proposed for 2030, they're going to start construction in 2027. And between the power that will be available and the water rights that are available in the city of Hutchinson, it seems like the county is primed for further economic development. How would you as a member of the county commission set policy to foster that and to keep that momentum going forward? Lindsey Hatfield: Yeah, first of all, I was so excited. I got an email an hour before, well, I got it the night before, but I read it an hour before that press conference and I went over there. It was such an exciting press conference to be there live when it was announced. So how I would help foster that is economic development is such an important part of our community.&nbsp; And I would make sure that any, so any ideas that are brought forth to the county commission, we really are supporting. We're supporting places like our chamber of commerce and other programs in Hutchinson that are really doing the hard heavy lifting for economic development and making sure that we support them in any way that we can, because that is really economic development is the only way we're going to progress and move forward as a county. Nick Gosnell: As I said to your opponent when I interviewed him earlier on this morning, no matter who wins, it looks like there's going to be two new county commissioners and three, I don't want to say old county commissioners, but three remaining county commissioners. That's it. So how do you persuade when a majority of the commission at least has pointed in a direction and now you, now you need to persuade at least one of them if you want to change the direction at all? Lindsey Hatfield: Sure. I don't think of it so much as persuasion as just having a conversation and working with them and maybe getting them to understand where I'm coming from. Obviously when you work with anybody, it's a give and take, right? So I want to hear what they have to say and really take that in and, and, and discuss that. And I would hope that they would be willing to give the same back to me so that we could find common ground because really, I think we all probably share the same, what we want for Reno County, how we want it to be. It's just getting there and finding the way to that. Nick Gosnell: The Reno County health department was put out front as all health departments across the state were during COVID. But the health department does a whole lot of things that, that have nothing to do with infectious disease. And when we're getting back to, I'm praying, normal life, at least closer to normal than we've been in the last five years, talk about the importance of supporting what they do, speaking generally, because the health department is one of the larger departments that the county actually has some oversight over in a way that they maybe don't the other ones that are just for want of a better way of putting it, branch offices of the state, like the treasurer and so on. Lindsey Hatfield: Right. So that was really the catalyst for me running for this position was the fact that our incumbent, the person who's currently there, essentially felt like wanted to dismantle the health department. And, and, and to me, it's such a vital and important part of our community. As a kid, I got vaccinated there. And I know that it's the only place in Reno County that women can get access to WIC, women, infant and children, which is from pregnancy all through age five.&nbsp; It's extremely important. That's not all that they do, but it is the health of our community. It has to be a place for everyone in the county to be able to come and receive health services. And so that is our responsibility, not only to fund that, but to make sure that it continues and continues to help us have a thriving community. Nick Gosnell: All right. The county commission, the basic function of it now, as opposed to maybe what it was 20, 30 years ago, now, now that they have a professional administrator, it isn't so much about the day to day deciding what the, uh, what, what check gets written today, as much as it is getting the general direction of the budget and the priorities for the county as a whole from a year to year basis. So what is your experience in that area of things in terms of budgeting and saying, okay, this is a good idea, but maybe not right now. Or this is an idea that we need to do now to set the, to set the pace for future years. How do you make those decisions? How does that go through your mind when you're making decisions for the short, medium and long term? Lindsey Hatfield: Right. This is where I think my day job helps a lot because I work in property management or asset management. So you're dealing with an asset, a property and Reno County is also an asset, right? And so part of that is creating a budget for your year, looking at your income and your expenses. But a lot, a big part of asset management is not having deferred maintenance. So taking care of the little things, not putting a bandaid over something that's just going to cost you more money down the road. Um, so for me, I'm very comfortable creating budgets, working with budgets cause it's what I do in my day job. And it's really about planning for the big expenses.&nbsp; You're not going to have to replace your roof every year, but eventually you're going to need to replace your roof. You can't keep spending thousands of dollars, patching it and patching it and patching it when really you just need to replace it. So I have a lot of experience with that side sort of stuff with property management and, and I'm very comfortable with budgets. Nick Gosnell: All right. And there are some areas, as I alluded to earlier, that are branch offices of the state, like the county treasurer basically has to follow whatever the statute says with regard to that county appraiser for all of the frustration that people have with their appraisals and the changes in that kind of stuff. Most of that is statutorily based and has to do with just comparables and those sorts of things.&nbsp; I've talked to the appraiser about that. So in those areas where you may not have a ton of ability to change what they do because the statute says what it says, well, how do you, how do you say to them, okay, yeah, we know you have to do this, but maybe you can do it in a different way, uh, in an effort to, to save the taxpayers money where it's even possible. Lindsey Hatfield: I think you just hit the nail on the head. You say to them, I know you have to do this, but let's rethink this. Is there a different way that we can do this, hopefully to save people money? Uh, I mean, that's, that's getting into the nitty gritty of it. And I'm sure if I'm elected, um, you know, I'll have a lot of experience with that.&nbsp; But for me, it's all about trying to find new ways of doing things different than what we have been doing. Because to me, it feels like a lot of what we're doing is not helping us progress and move forward as a county. And we're just sort of stagnant and, and that's not my vision for the future.&nbsp; And I think a lot of people who live here, that's not our vision. We want to see people moving back to Reno County and not moving away. And that's what's been happening.&nbsp; So we just need new leadership with a vision who is willing to try something different than what we've been doing. Nick Gosnell: All right. So how can folks find out more about your campaign and find out more about, uh, just how you plan to deal with issues? They can do so online, right? Lindsey Hatfield: Yeah. I have a website <a href="http://voteforhatfield.com">voteforhatfield.com</a>. You can go there and you can find out all about me. You can also email me <a href="mailto:Hatfieldforcommissioner@gmail.com">Hatfieldforcommissioner@gmail.com</a>. I'm happy to answer any emails as well, and I live in Hyde Park. I have, I'm right across from the Hyde Park here or that little, you know, the grassy Hyde Park. So come over and say hi, if you want to, we've got all our scary Halloween decorations out right now.Below is the audio interview.<div><iframe title="Lindsey Hatfield" allowtransparency="true" height="150" width="100%" style="border: none; min-width: min(100%, 430px);height:150px;" scrolling="no" data-name="pb-iframe-player" src="https://www.podbean.com/player-v2/?i=shi38-17184ac-pb&from=pb6admin&share=1&download=1&rtl=0&fonts=Arial&skin=60a0c8&font-color=&logo_link=episode_page&btn-skin=ff6d00" loading="lazy"></iframe></div>

🎧 Transcript: Lindsey Hatfield, County Commission 4

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Hutchinson Community College volleyball team picked up three victories on Monday night at the Blue Dragon triangular at the Sports Arena.

The Blue Dragons swept Neosho County 25-18, 25-18, 25-22. Hutchinson also defeated a pair of KCAC junior varsity teams, downing the Friends JV 25-16, 29-27, 25-18 and the McPherson College JV 25-20, 25-20, 21-25, 25-21.

Hutchinson improved to 17-17 overall and will return to Jayhawk Conference play on Wednesday against Butler at 6 p.m. at the Sports Arena. The Blue Dragons will play Seward County on Friday and Pratt on Saturday.

Redshirt freshman Tiana Simmons led the Blue Dragons against the Panthers with 12 kills and three blocks. Simmons also had seven digs.

Freshman Atlyn Proctor had eight kills and one block. Freshman Brooke Galey had seven kills, three blocks and seven digs.

Sophomore setter Shelbi Wilson finished with 33 assists to go with two kills, two blocks and an ace.

Freshman Ellie Suber finished with a team-high 11 digs and two ace serves against Neosho County.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1729597169847.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>HutchCC Sports InformationHUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Hutchinson Community College volleyball team picked up three victories on Monday night at the Blue Dragon triangular at the Sports Arena.The Blue Dragons swept Neosho County 25-18, 25-18, 25-22. Hutchinson also defeated a pair of KCAC junior varsity teams, downing the Friends JV 25-16, 29-27, 25-18 and the McPherson College JV 25-20, 25-20, 21-25, 25-21.Hutchinson improved to 17-17 overall and will return to Jayhawk Conference play on Wednesday against Butler at 6 p.m. at the Sports Arena. The Blue Dragons will play Seward County on Friday and Pratt on Saturday.Redshirt freshman Tiana Simmons led the Blue Dragons against the Panthers with 12 kills and three blocks. Simmons also had seven digs.Freshman Atlyn Proctor had eight kills and one block. Freshman Brooke Galey had seven kills, three blocks and seven digs.Sophomore setter Shelbi Wilson finished with 33 assists to go with two kills, two blocks and an ace.Freshman Ellie Suber finished with a team-high 11 digs and two ace serves against Neosho County.

🏐 Dragons earn 3 wins at home triangular

The Hutchinson Community College men’s basketball team opened the new season as a nationally ranked team on Monday, returning to the preseason NJCAA Men’s Division I national preseason poll after a one-season-hiatus.

The Blue Dragons open the 2024-25 season ranked No. 15. The Blue Dragons are one of four Jayhawk Conference teams ranked in the Top 25 and 1 of 5 teams receiving mention in the national rankings.

Last week, the Dragons were picked to finish second in the KJCCC preseason coaches’ poll.

The Blue Dragons were 29-7 last season and went 20-4 in the KJCCC to place third in the league. The Dragons reached the Region 6 Tournament championship game and earned an at-large bid for the 2024 NJCAA Tournament. Hutchinson advanced to the national tournament quarterfinals after wins against USC-Salkehatchie and Chipola before falling to Connors State.

Hutchinson has just one player returning from last year, guard Kobe Smith 6.3 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists last season.

South Plains received 14 of the 16 first-place votes in the preseason rankings and is No. 1 to start the season. Defending national champion Barton received the other two first-place votes and starts the season ranked No. 2. Daytona State is No. 3, Triton is No. 4 and Trinity Valley is No. 5.

The Blue Dragons are the second-highest-ranked KJCCC team in the national poll at No. 15. Garden City is No. 19 and Cowley is No. 25. Coffeyville is receiving votes in the preseason poll.

Before the Blue Dragons officially open the season, they have one more one preseason scrimmage at 4 p.m. on Monday when they play host to Newman University in a home scrimmage on Monday at the Sports Arena.

The Dragons officially open the Kyle Fisher era on Tuesday, November 5 against Hesston College.

NJCAA DIV. 1 MEN’S BASKETBALL PRESEASON POLL

                                                                        Points

1. South Plains (14)                                  349

2. Barton (2)                                               335

3. Daytona State                                       323

4. Triton                                                       306

5. Trinity Valley                                         299

6. Northwest Florida State                   274

7. Salt Lake                                                 264

8. Howard                                                   253

9. Jones                                                       234

10. Chipola                                                  228

11. Indian Hills                                           219

12. College of Southern Idaho            176

13. Odessa College                                  174

15. Hutchinson                                         166

16. Panola                                                   106

17. Moberly Area                                     80

18. Vincennes                                           79

19. Garden City                                         72

20. Walters State                                     69

21. Mineral Area                                      67

22. Georgia Highlands                            48

23. Eastern Florida State                       44

24. Snow                                                     32

25. Cowley                                                  24

Receiving Votes: Harcum, Lee, New Mexico, Southeastern, Monroe, Northeast Mississippi, Kilgore, Coffeyville, Murray St., Itawamba, Indian River St., Florida Southwestern, Caldwell Tech, Ranger, Wallace St., Albany Tech, Casper 

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1729595626217.jpeg" alt="Image Courtesy HutchCC Sports Information" />
 <figcaption>Image Courtesy HutchCC Sports Information</figcaption>
 </figure>HutchCC Sports InformationThe Hutchinson Community College men’s basketball team opened the new season as a nationally ranked team on Monday, returning to the preseason NJCAA Men’s Division I national preseason poll after a one-season-hiatus.The Blue Dragons open the 2024-25 season ranked No. 15. The Blue Dragons are one of four Jayhawk Conference teams ranked in the Top 25 and 1 of 5 teams receiving mention in the national rankings.Last week, the Dragons were picked to finish second in the KJCCC preseason coaches’ poll.The Blue Dragons were 29-7 last season and went 20-4 in the KJCCC to place third in the league. The Dragons reached the Region 6 Tournament championship game and earned an at-large bid for the 2024 NJCAA Tournament. Hutchinson advanced to the national tournament quarterfinals after wins against USC-Salkehatchie and Chipola before falling to Connors State.Hutchinson has just one player returning from last year, guard Kobe Smith 6.3 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists last season.South Plains received 14 of the 16 first-place votes in the preseason rankings and is No. 1 to start the season. Defending national champion Barton received the other two first-place votes and starts the season ranked No. 2. Daytona State is No. 3, Triton is No. 4 and Trinity Valley is No. 5.The Blue Dragons are the second-highest-ranked KJCCC team in the national poll at No. 15. Garden City is No. 19 and Cowley is No. 25. Coffeyville is receiving votes in the preseason poll.Before the Blue Dragons officially open the season, they have one more one preseason scrimmage at 4 p.m. on Monday when they play host to Newman University in a home scrimmage on Monday at the Sports Arena.The Dragons officially open the Kyle Fisher era on Tuesday, November 5 against Hesston College.NJCAA DIV. 1 MEN’S BASKETBALL PRESEASON POLL Points1. South Plains (14) 3492. Barton (2) 3353. Daytona State 3234. Triton 3065. Trinity Valley 2996. Northwest Florida State 2747. Salt Lake 2648. Howard 2539. Jones 23410. Chipola 22811. Indian Hills 21912. College of Southern Idaho 17613. Odessa College 17414. Northeastern Oklahoma A&amp;M 16715. Hutchinson 16616. Panola 10617. Moberly Area 8018. Vincennes 7919. Garden City 7220. Walters State 6921. Mineral Area 6722. Georgia Highlands 4823. Eastern Florida State 4424. Snow 3225. Cowley 24Receiving Votes: Harcum, Lee, New Mexico, Southeastern, Monroe, Northeast Mississippi, Kilgore, Coffeyville, Murray St., Itawamba, Indian River St., Florida Southwestern, Caldwell Tech, Ranger, Wallace St., Albany Tech, Casper

🏀 MBB: HutchCC begins Fisher era ranked No. 15

Last season, the Hutchinson Community College women’s basketball team captured its first-ever NJCAA national championship.

Starting its 51st season next week, the Blue Dragons start a season ranked No. 1 for the second time in program history.

The NJCAA released its 2024-25 preseason basketball rankings on Monday and the Blue Dragons received all 12 first-place votes to sit atop the national rankings to open the new season, which begins on November 1 at NOC-Tonkawa.

The Blue Dragons were preseason No. 1 before the 2017-18 season. The previous high in an NJCAA National ranking was No. 2 in the 2014-15 preseason poll. The Dragons were No. 3 in the 2013-14 preseason rankings.

This is the fourth time Blue Dragons women’s basketball has been ranked No. 1 in the national rankings. Dating back to last season, the Dragons have been ranked No. 1 for five-consecutive polls.

The first time the Blue Dragons were ranked No. 1 was in the 2012-13 season and spent five weeks at No. 1. Then in the 2014-15 season, the Blue Dragons were ranked No. 1 for six weeks.

Last season, the Blue Dragons were unranked to open the season and subsequently went 37-0 to capture the national championship with an 88-80 overtime victory over Northwest Florida State on April 1 in the NJCAA Tournament championship game in Casper, Wyoming.

Starting his 18th season on the Hutchinson bench, head coach John Ontjes has four players returning from last year’s national championship team.

All-conference, All-Region 6 and NJCAA All-Tournament performer Hailey Jackson is the lone full-time starter back for the new season. Also returning is guard Kahlen Norris, guard Jada Pleasant and forward Madi Denison are back this season.

The NJCAA preseason Top 5 has Hutchinson, Northwest Florida State, Wabash Valley, Eastern Arizona and Three Rivers.

Dodge City is the only other KJCCC team in the preseason rankings at No. 14.

The Blue Dragons will have one home scrimmage, which will be at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday against Tabor College at the Sports Arena.

NJCAA DIV. 1 WOMEN’S BASKETBALL PRESEASON RANKINGS

                                                                                Points

1. Hutchinson (12)                                   250

2. Northwest Florida State                           240       

3. Wabash Valley                                              230       

4. Eastern Arizona                                            220       

5. Three Rivers                                                  210       

6. Gulf Coast State                                           200       

7. New Mexico JC                                             190       

8. Odessa                                                            180       

9. Shelton State                                                170       

10. Casper College                                           160       

11. College of Southern Idaho                    150       

12. Collin County                                              140       

13. North Dakota SCOS                                  130       

14. Dodge City                                                   120       

15. Trinity Valley                                              110       

16. Cochise College                                         100       

17. Mississippi Gulf Coast                             90          

18. Blinn                                                               80          

19. Pearl River                                                   70          

20. Eastern Florida State                               60          

21. Monroe University                                   50          

22. Chattanooga State                                   40          

23. McLennan                                                   30          

24. Pensacola State                                         20          

25. Salt Lake                                                       10     

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1729595416147.jpeg" alt="Image Courtesy HutchCC Sports Information" />
 <figcaption>Image Courtesy HutchCC Sports Information</figcaption>
 </figure>HutchCC Sports InformationLast season, the Hutchinson Community College women’s basketball team captured its first-ever NJCAA national championship.Starting its 51st season next week, the Blue Dragons start a season ranked No. 1 for the second time in program history.The NJCAA released its 2024-25 preseason basketball rankings on Monday and the Blue Dragons received all 12 first-place votes to sit atop the national rankings to open the new season, which begins on November 1 at NOC-Tonkawa.The Blue Dragons were preseason No. 1 before the 2017-18 season. The previous high in an NJCAA National ranking was No. 2 in the 2014-15 preseason poll. The Dragons were No. 3 in the 2013-14 preseason rankings.This is the fourth time Blue Dragons women’s basketball has been ranked No. 1 in the national rankings. Dating back to last season, the Dragons have been ranked No. 1 for five-consecutive polls.The first time the Blue Dragons were ranked No. 1 was in the 2012-13 season and spent five weeks at No. 1. Then in the 2014-15 season, the Blue Dragons were ranked No. 1 for six weeks.Last season, the Blue Dragons were unranked to open the season and subsequently went 37-0 to capture the national championship with an 88-80 overtime victory over Northwest Florida State on April 1 in the NJCAA Tournament championship game in Casper, Wyoming.Starting his 18th season on the Hutchinson bench, head coach John Ontjes has four players returning from last year’s national championship team.All-conference, All-Region 6 and NJCAA All-Tournament performer Hailey Jackson is the lone full-time starter back for the new season. Also returning is guard Kahlen Norris, guard Jada Pleasant and forward Madi Denison are back this season.The NJCAA preseason Top 5 has Hutchinson, Northwest Florida State, Wabash Valley, Eastern Arizona and Three Rivers.Dodge City is the only other KJCCC team in the preseason rankings at No. 14.The Blue Dragons will have one home scrimmage, which will be at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday against Tabor College at the Sports Arena.NJCAA DIV. 1 WOMEN’S BASKETBALL PRESEASON RANKINGS Points1. Hutchinson (12) 2502. Northwest Florida State 240 3. Wabash Valley 230 4. Eastern Arizona 220 5. Three Rivers 210 6. Gulf Coast State 200 7. New Mexico JC 190 8. Odessa 180 9. Shelton State 170 10. Casper College 160 11. College of Southern Idaho 150 12. Collin County 140 13. North Dakota SCOS 130 14. Dodge City 120 15. Trinity Valley 110 16. Cochise College 100 17. Mississippi Gulf Coast 90 18. Blinn 80 19. Pearl River 70 20. Eastern Florida State 60 21. Monroe University 50 22. Chattanooga State 40 23. McLennan 30 24. Pensacola State 20 25. Salt Lake 10

🏀 WBB: Dragons are preseason No. 1 

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Dillon Lecture Series announced the speakers for the 2025 season this week.

The lecture schedule kicks off with Rob Kenney on February 4. Known affectionately as the “internet Dad”, Kenney rose to fame in 2020 with his YouTube channel “Dad, How Do I?”, where he generates practical advice and life skills for people who may not have had a father figure in their lives. Kenney’s warm and encouraging demeanor has earned him millions of followers, turning him into a comforting father figure for many.

On April 1, the speaker will be author actor, musician, comedian and activist Tyler Merritt. Merritt has devoted his creativity to bringing his ethos of “Love. Learn. Create.” to life through his words and videos as part of The Tyler Merritt Project.

September 16 will feature former chief of counterintelligence at the CIA Jim Olson. Olson served for over thirty years in the Directorate of Operations of the Central Intelligence Agency, mostly overseas in clandestine operations. In addition to several foreign assignments, he was Chief of Counterintelligence at CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia.

Finally, the October 28 speaker will be award-winning broadcaster Joel Goldberg. Goldberg has been a member of the Kansas City Royals television broadcast since 2008, serving as the host of every pregame and postgame show on FOX Sports Kansas City and Bally Sports KC.

2025 will be the 44th season for the Dillon Lecture Series on the Hutchinson Community College campus. For more information on the Dillon Lecture Series, or for information on how to become a patron, contact Becky Rogers at 620-665-3505 or <a href="mailto:rogersb@hutchcc.edu">rogersb@hutchcc.edu</a> or visit the college website at <a href="http://www.hutchcc.edu/dls">www.hutchcc.edu/dls</a>.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1729537541470.jpeg" alt="2025 Dillon Lecture Series Speakers" />
 <figcaption>2025 Dillon Lecture Series Speakers</figcaption>
 </figure>Hutchinson Community CollegeHUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Dillon Lecture Series announced the speakers for the 2025 season this week.The lecture schedule kicks off with Rob Kenney on February 4. Known affectionately as the “internet Dad”, Kenney rose to fame in 2020 with his YouTube channel “Dad, How Do I?”, where he generates practical advice and life skills for people who may not have had a father figure in their lives. Kenney’s warm and encouraging demeanor has earned him millions of followers, turning him into a comforting father figure for many.On April 1, the speaker will be author actor, musician, comedian and activist Tyler Merritt. Merritt has devoted his creativity to bringing his ethos of “Love. Learn. Create.” to life through his words and videos as part of The Tyler Merritt Project.September 16 will feature former chief of counterintelligence at the CIA Jim Olson. Olson served for over thirty years in the Directorate of Operations of the Central Intelligence Agency, mostly overseas in clandestine operations. In addition to several foreign assignments, he was Chief of Counterintelligence at CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia.Finally, the October 28 speaker will be award-winning broadcaster Joel Goldberg. Goldberg has been a member of the Kansas City Royals television broadcast since 2008, serving as the host of every pregame and postgame show on FOX Sports Kansas City and Bally Sports KC.2025 will be the 44th season for the Dillon Lecture Series on the Hutchinson Community College campus. For more information on the Dillon Lecture Series, or for information on how to become a patron, contact Becky Rogers at 620-665-3505 or <a href="mailto:rogersb@hutchcc.edu">rogersb@hutchcc.edu</a> or visit the college website at <a href="http://www.hutchcc.edu/dls">www.hutchcc.edu/dls</a>.

Dillon Lecture Series speakers announced

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — For the seventh consecutive week, the Hutchinson Community College football team remains No. 1 in the latest NJCAA rankings released on Monday afternoon.

The Blue Dragons are 7-0 overall, 3-0 in Jayhawk Conference play.

HutchCC defeated Coffeyville on the road, 40-17, on Saturday to maintain the unbeaten record.

The Blue Dragons will host No. 13 Butler on Saturday at Gowans Stadium for a noon kickoff. The HutchCC athletic department is asking for those attending to please wear blue.

Three other Jayhawk Conference schools are in the Top 15. Garden City remains No. 5, while Butler is No. 13 and Coffeyville is No. 15. Dodge City is receiving votes.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1729339721730.jpeg" alt="Photo Courtesy HutchCC Athletics" />
 <figcaption>Photo Courtesy HutchCC Athletics</figcaption>
 </figure>HUTCHINSON, Kan. — For the seventh consecutive week, the Hutchinson Community College football team remains No. 1 in the latest NJCAA rankings released on Monday afternoon.The Blue Dragons are 7-0 overall, 3-0 in Jayhawk Conference play.HutchCC defeated Coffeyville on the road, 40-17, on Saturday to maintain the unbeaten record.The Blue Dragons will host No. 13 Butler on Saturday at Gowans Stadium for a noon kickoff. The HutchCC athletic department is asking for those attending to please wear blue.Three other Jayhawk Conference schools are in the Top 15. Garden City remains No. 5, while Butler is No. 13 and Coffeyville is No. 15. Dodge City is receiving votes.

🏈 HutchCC remains No. 1 ahead of showdown with No. 13 Butler on Saturday

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Hutchinson Community College women's soccer team remains No. 16 in the latest rankings released by the NJCAA on Monday afternoon.

The Blue Dragons are 9-2-5 overall, 8-2-5 in Jayhawk Conference play.

HutchCC picked up a 2-0 win over Barton last Wednesday and earned a 0-0 draw at then-No. 7 Kansas City.&nbsp;

The Blue Dragons will host No. 19 Cowley on Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. for the final game of the regular season.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1729538723684.jpeg" alt="Blue Dragon soccer" />
 <figcaption>Blue Dragon soccer</figcaption>
 </figure>HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Hutchinson Community College women's soccer team remains No. 16 in the latest rankings released by the NJCAA on Monday afternoon.The Blue Dragons are 9-2-5 overall, 8-2-5 in Jayhawk Conference play.HutchCC picked up a 2-0 win over Barton last Wednesday and earned a 0-0 draw at then-No. 7 Kansas City.&nbsp;The Blue Dragons will host No. 19 Cowley on Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. for the final game of the regular season.&nbsp;

⚽ HutchCC remains No. 16 in latest rankings

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The No. 16-ranked Hutchinson Community College women’s soccer team earned a key KJCCC road point on Saturday and moved into third place in the Jayhawk Conference standings.

Scoring with 4:20 remaining in the second half to tie game on an Own goal, the Blue Dragons tied No. 7 Kansas City 1-1 at the KCK Soccer Complex.

The Blue Dragons extended their unbeaten streak to seven games (5-0-2) with their fifth tie of the season. Hutchinson is now 9-2-5 overall and is 8-2-5 in the KJCCC. Now with 29 league points, Hutchinson moved past Cowley into third place. The Dragons have one game remaining with Cowley next Saturday, October 26 at the Salthawk Sports Complex. Cowley has two games remaining.

Hutchinson is 0-0-2 against Kansas City this season and 6-1-4 all-time against the Blue Devils.

Kansas City took a 1-0 lead in the 33rd minute on a Cora Ellerman goal.

The Dragons weren’t able to muster much offense, firing just three total shots and only one shot on goal.

With just under five points to play, the Blue Dragons earned a corner kick. Taking the corner from the right of KCK goalkeeper Maria Heuman, Haley Rogers delivered a solid corner into the box. Kaitlyn Edwards tried for a header, but with a mad scramble for the loose ball, a Blue Devil defender knocked it own the goal for an Own goal, tying the match at 1-1 with 4:20 to play.

Playing a defensive game throughout – Kansas City out-shot Hutchinson 21-3 – the Dragon defense held on to finish off a key tie.

Blue Dragon freshman goalkeeper Marina Lopez (5-0-2) was tested making a career-high 11 saves. Lopez is the 10th Blue Dragon goalkeeper to post 10 or more saves in a single game in Hutchinson history. This was the 18th time a Dragon goalkeeper has had 10 or more saves in program history and the third time this season.

Hutchinson was held to a season- and program-low one shot on goal for only the fourth time in program history and the first since September 26, 2018 by Cloud County.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1729428651185.jpeg" alt="Image Courtesy HutchCC Sports Information" />
 <figcaption>Image Courtesy HutchCC Sports Information</figcaption>
 </figure>HutchCC Sports InformationKANSAS CITY, Kan. — The No. 16-ranked Hutchinson Community College women’s soccer team earned a key KJCCC road point on Saturday and moved into third place in the Jayhawk Conference standings.Scoring with 4:20 remaining in the second half to tie game on an Own goal, the Blue Dragons tied No. 7 Kansas City 1-1 at the KCK Soccer Complex.The Blue Dragons extended their unbeaten streak to seven games (5-0-2) with their fifth tie of the season. Hutchinson is now 9-2-5 overall and is 8-2-5 in the KJCCC. Now with 29 league points, Hutchinson moved past Cowley into third place. The Dragons have one game remaining with Cowley next Saturday, October 26 at the Salthawk Sports Complex. Cowley has two games remaining.Hutchinson is 0-0-2 against Kansas City this season and 6-1-4 all-time against the Blue Devils.Kansas City took a 1-0 lead in the 33rd minute on a Cora Ellerman goal.The Dragons weren’t able to muster much offense, firing just three total shots and only one shot on goal.With just under five points to play, the Blue Dragons earned a corner kick. Taking the corner from the right of KCK goalkeeper Maria Heuman, Haley Rogers delivered a solid corner into the box. Kaitlyn Edwards tried for a header, but with a mad scramble for the loose ball, a Blue Devil defender knocked it own the goal for an Own goal, tying the match at 1-1 with 4:20 to play.Playing a defensive game throughout – Kansas City out-shot Hutchinson 21-3 – the Dragon defense held on to finish off a key tie.Blue Dragon freshman goalkeeper Marina Lopez (5-0-2) was tested making a career-high 11 saves. Lopez is the 10th Blue Dragon goalkeeper to post 10 or more saves in a single game in Hutchinson history. This was the 18th time a Dragon goalkeeper has had 10 or more saves in program history and the third time this season.Hutchinson was held to a season- and program-low one shot on goal for only the fourth time in program history and the first since September 26, 2018 by Cloud County.

⚽ Dragons draw on road

CONCORDIA, Kan. — After dropping the first set on Saturday, the Hutchinson Community College volleyball team rebounded for a four-set Jayhawk Conference victory at Cloud County.

The Blue Dragons extended their winning streak over the Thunderbirds to 18 matches with a 16-25, 25-21, 25-23, 25-20 victory at the Thunderdome.

Hutchinson won its second match in a row and improved to 14-17 overall and moved into fifth place in the Jayhawk Conference with a 5-6 record. The Blue Dragons have a huge six-match week – all six matches at the Sports Arena – starting with three matches at 3, 5 and 7 p.m. on Monday in the Blue Dragon Triangular. Cloud County felt 5-19 and 0-13.

Sophomore setter Shelbi Wilson had a strong match, just missing a double-double with 35 assists and nine digs. Wilson set a balanced match with nine Blue Dragons netting nine or more kills.

Freshman Brooke Galey had a match-high 11 kills to lead Hutchinson. Freshman Atlyn Proctor had 10 kills.

Sophomore middle blocker McKenzie finished with nine kills and four total blocks. Redshirt freshman Tiana Simmons just missed a double-double with nine kills and a career-high 19 digs.

Wilson and freshman Kierny Follmer had three blocks each.

Freshman libero Addy Foster finished with 14 digs and freshman Ellie Suber added eight digs.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1729428415082.jpeg" alt="Image Courtesy HutchCC Sports Information" />
 <figcaption>Image Courtesy HutchCC Sports Information</figcaption>
 </figure>HutchCC Sports InformationCONCORDIA, Kan. — After dropping the first set on Saturday, the Hutchinson Community College volleyball team rebounded for a four-set Jayhawk Conference victory at Cloud County.The Blue Dragons extended their winning streak over the Thunderbirds to 18 matches with a 16-25, 25-21, 25-23, 25-20 victory at the Thunderdome.Hutchinson won its second match in a row and improved to 14-17 overall and moved into fifth place in the Jayhawk Conference with a 5-6 record. The Blue Dragons have a huge six-match week – all six matches at the Sports Arena – starting with three matches at 3, 5 and 7 p.m. on Monday in the Blue Dragon Triangular. Cloud County felt 5-19 and 0-13.Sophomore setter Shelbi Wilson had a strong match, just missing a double-double with 35 assists and nine digs. Wilson set a balanced match with nine Blue Dragons netting nine or more kills.Freshman Brooke Galey had a match-high 11 kills to lead Hutchinson. Freshman Atlyn Proctor had 10 kills.Sophomore middle blocker McKenzie finished with nine kills and four total blocks. Redshirt freshman Tiana Simmons just missed a double-double with nine kills and a career-high 19 digs.Wilson and freshman Kierny Follmer had three blocks each.Freshman libero Addy Foster finished with 14 digs and freshman Ellie Suber added eight digs.

🏐 Dragons wins at Cloud

No. 1 Hutchinson (6-0, 2-0) at No. 12 Coffeyville (4-2, 1-1) When: Saturday, October 19, 2024 Where: Veterans Memorial Stadium, Coffeyville, KS Kickoff: 1 p.m. Radio: <a href="https://streamdb5web.securenetsystems.net/v5/KHUT">KHUT-FM (102.9)</a>; <a href="https://radio.securenetsystems.net/v5/KWBW">KWBW-AM/FM (1450/98.5)</a>, 12:30 p.m. - Sean Boston (PBP); Daren Dunn (Color) Video: Red Raven YouTube Channel, 12:45 p.m. X: @bluedragonsport

The Hutchinson Community College football team is back on the road for a second-straight week, this time facing a nationally ranked opponent.

The No. 1-ranked Blue Dragons will meet the No. 12-ranked Coffeyville Red Ravens in a 1 p.m. kickoff on Saturday at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Coffeyville.

Coffeyville will be the fourth ranked opponent the Blue Dragons have played this season. Hutchinson defeated No. 1 Iowa Western (39-38), No. 12 Iowa Central (33-30, OT) and No. 14 Dodge City (42-0) so far this season. Still on the schedule for Hutchinson is No. 11 Butler and No. 5 Garden City. Highland was ranked until the latest poll released on Monday.

The Blue Dragons (6-0) remain one of two undefeated teams left in NJCAA Division I at the mid-point of the 2024 season. Holmes is the other unbeaten team at 6-0. Hutchinson is one of three KJCCC teams not to have dropped a conference game this season. Garden City is 3-0, while the Blue Dragons and Butler is 2-0.

Coffeyville is right on the heels of the Busters, Dragons and Grizzlies at 1-1. Under first-year head coach Nick Dobler, the Ravens have lost a 29-23 overtime battle to Garden City and lost 42-20 to No. 2 Iowa Western. The Ravens’ four wins have come against the Kansas Wesleyan JV, at Cisco, Highland and at Iowa Central.

Saturday will be the second-straight excursion into Montgomery County for the Blue Dragons. Last week, the Blue Dragons rolled to a 48-7 victory over Independence.

Waymond Jordan Jr. had his fourth 100-yard rushing game with 101 yards and two touchdowns. The Blue Dragons held their second-straight opponent to negative rushing yards (-20) and forced two takeaways. Freshman return specialist Kordell Gouldsby had a 50-yard punt return for a touchdown and accounted for 231 all-purpose yards against the Pirates. Gouldsby was named KJCCC and NJCAA Player of the Week for that performance.

Coffeyville (4-2) enters play on Saturday on a two-game winning streak with a 33-17 home win over Highland and a 31-20 victory at Iowa Central last Saturday.

Red Raven quarterback Chris Arviso completed 11 of 22 passes for 309 yards and three touchdowns. Receiver Brec Long the KJCCC and NJCAA Offensive Player of the Week had three matches for 124 yards and three touchdowns.

The Blue Dragons bid for their 21st-straight win over a KJCCC team and to extend the program record for true road wins to 17-straight games.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1729339721730.jpeg" alt="The No. 1-ranked Blue Dragon football team travels to play No. 12 Coffeyville at 1 p.m. on Saturday in Coffeyville." />
 <figcaption>The No. 1-ranked Blue Dragon football team travels to play No. 12 Coffeyville at 1 p.m. on Saturday in Coffeyville.</figcaption>
 </figure>Hutchinson CC Sports InformationNo. 1 Hutchinson (6-0, 2-0) at No. 12 Coffeyville (4-2, 1-1) When: Saturday, October 19, 2024 Where: Veterans Memorial Stadium, Coffeyville, KS Kickoff: 1 p.m. Radio: <a href="https://streamdb5web.securenetsystems.net/v5/KHUT">KHUT-FM (102.9)</a>; <a href="https://radio.securenetsystems.net/v5/KWBW">KWBW-AM/FM (1450/98.5)</a>, 12:30 p.m. - Sean Boston (PBP); Daren Dunn (Color) Video: Red Raven YouTube Channel, 12:45 p.m. X: @bluedragonsportThe Hutchinson Community College football team is back on the road for a second-straight week, this time facing a nationally ranked opponent.The No. 1-ranked Blue Dragons will meet the No. 12-ranked Coffeyville Red Ravens in a 1 p.m. kickoff on Saturday at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Coffeyville.Coffeyville will be the fourth ranked opponent the Blue Dragons have played this season. Hutchinson defeated No. 1 Iowa Western (39-38), No. 12 Iowa Central (33-30, OT) and No. 14 Dodge City (42-0) so far this season. Still on the schedule for Hutchinson is No. 11 Butler and No. 5 Garden City. Highland was ranked until the latest poll released on Monday.The Blue Dragons (6-0) remain one of two undefeated teams left in NJCAA Division I at the mid-point of the 2024 season. Holmes is the other unbeaten team at 6-0. Hutchinson is one of three KJCCC teams not to have dropped a conference game this season. Garden City is 3-0, while the Blue Dragons and Butler is 2-0.Coffeyville is right on the heels of the Busters, Dragons and Grizzlies at 1-1. Under first-year head coach Nick Dobler, the Ravens have lost a 29-23 overtime battle to Garden City and lost 42-20 to No. 2 Iowa Western. The Ravens’ four wins have come against the Kansas Wesleyan JV, at Cisco, Highland and at Iowa Central.Saturday will be the second-straight excursion into Montgomery County for the Blue Dragons. Last week, the Blue Dragons rolled to a 48-7 victory over Independence.Waymond Jordan Jr. had his fourth 100-yard rushing game with 101 yards and two touchdowns. The Blue Dragons held their second-straight opponent to negative rushing yards (-20) and forced two takeaways. Freshman return specialist Kordell Gouldsby had a 50-yard punt return for a touchdown and accounted for 231 all-purpose yards against the Pirates. Gouldsby was named KJCCC and NJCAA Player of the Week for that performance.Coffeyville (4-2) enters play on Saturday on a two-game winning streak with a 33-17 home win over Highland and a 31-20 victory at Iowa Central last Saturday.Red Raven quarterback Chris Arviso completed 11 of 22 passes for 309 yards and three touchdowns. Receiver Brec Long the KJCCC and NJCAA Offensive Player of the Week had three matches for 124 yards and three touchdowns.The Blue Dragons bid for their 21st-straight win over a KJCCC team and to extend the program record for true road wins to 17-straight games.

🏈 No. 1 Hutchinson travels to No. 12 Coffeyville

The Hutchinson Community College women’s cross country team remained No. 6 in the final United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association’s NJCAA Division I Women’s Cross Country Rankings.

Led by freshman Faith Jepchirchir, who has won all three races she has competed in this season, the Blue Dragons have been in the Top 10 for the entire season. The Dragons started the season at No. 6, moved up to No. 5 and have been No. 6 for the past two polls.

The Blue Dragons are the highest ranked Jayhawk Conference team in this week’s rankings.

Butler is No. 10, Cloud County is No. 13, Dodge City is No. 14 and Garden City is No. 15.

Salt Lake received all 10 first-place votes and is No. 1. College of Southern Idaho is ranked second, Iowa Central is third, Crowder is fourth and New Mexico Junior College is fifth in the national rankings.

The Blue Dragons will next race in the Region 6 Cross Country championships next Friday, October 25 at the Kansas Veterans Home in Winfield.

USTFCCCA/NJCAA DIVISION I WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY RANKINGS

1. Salt Lake (10)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 200 2. College of Southern Idaho&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 183 3. Iowa Central&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 180 4. Crowder&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 174 5. New Mexico Junior College&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 158 6. Hutchinson&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 155 7. Butler&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 133 8. Central Arizona&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 108 9. Iowa Western&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 105 10. Odessa&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 102 11. Pima&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 98 12. El Paso&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 95 13. Cloud County&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 87 14. Dodge City&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 72 15. Garden City&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 67 16. Snow&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 51 17. Southern Nevada&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 41 18. Amarillo&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 33 19. Rangers&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 22 20. Blinn&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 12&nbsp;&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1728868870788.jpeg" alt="Photo by Rama Peroo/Cowley Sports Information" />
 <figcaption>Photo by Rama Peroo/Cowley Sports Information</figcaption>
 </figure>HutchCC Sports InformationThe Hutchinson Community College women’s cross country team remained No. 6 in the final United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association’s NJCAA Division I Women’s Cross Country Rankings.Led by freshman Faith Jepchirchir, who has won all three races she has competed in this season, the Blue Dragons have been in the Top 10 for the entire season. The Dragons started the season at No. 6, moved up to No. 5 and have been No. 6 for the past two polls.The Blue Dragons are the highest ranked Jayhawk Conference team in this week’s rankings.Butler is No. 10, Cloud County is No. 13, Dodge City is No. 14 and Garden City is No. 15.Salt Lake received all 10 first-place votes and is No. 1. College of Southern Idaho is ranked second, Iowa Central is third, Crowder is fourth and New Mexico Junior College is fifth in the national rankings.The Blue Dragons will next race in the Region 6 Cross Country championships next Friday, October 25 at the Kansas Veterans Home in Winfield.USTFCCCA/NJCAA DIVISION I WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY RANKINGS1. Salt Lake (10)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 200 2. College of Southern Idaho&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 183 3. Iowa Central&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 180 4. Crowder&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 174 5. New Mexico Junior College&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 158 6. Hutchinson&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 155 7. Butler&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 133 8. Central Arizona&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 108 9. Iowa Western&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 105 10. Odessa&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 102 11. Pima&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 98 12. El Paso&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 95 13. Cloud County&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 87 14. Dodge City&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 72 15. Garden City&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 67 16. Snow&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 51 17. Southern Nevada&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 41 18. Amarillo&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 33 19. Rangers&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 22 20. Blinn&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 12&nbsp;&nbsp;

👟 Women No. 6 in final regular season rankings

The Hutchinson Community College men’s cross country team remained No. 5 in the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association’s NJCAA Division I Men’s Cross Country rankings for the second-straight week.

Coming off a third-place finish at the Region 6 Preview on the course of the upcoming Region 6 Championships stayed at No. 5.

Hutchinson opened the season No. 10 in the preseason rankings. The Blue Dragons climbed to No. 9 and then jumped four spots to No. 5 after a Top 10 finish in the university division at the Chili Pepper Festival.

Dennis Cheroiyut, Cornelius Kogo and Titus Kiprotich have been the top runners for the Dragons this season, including a record-setting performance by Kiprotich last week at the Region 6 Preview.

The Blue Dragons are the second-highest ranked KJCCC team in the final regular-season rankings. Butler is fourth and Hutchinson is fifth in the rankings. In the teams’ two matchups at 8,000 meters, each team has played higher than the other once each.

Other KJCCC teams ranked are Garden City at No. 11 and Colby at No. 19.

Salt Lake  and Iowa Western are Nos. 1 and 2, respectively. There are only three points separating the two teams. El Paso is No. 3 in the national rankings.

The Blue Dragons will run next at the 2024 Region 6 championships next Friday, October 25 at the Kansas Veterans Home in Winfield.

1. Salt Lake (6)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 196 2. Iowa Western (4)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 193 3. El Paso&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 179 4. Butler&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 172 5. Hutchinson&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 155 6. New Mexico Junior College&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 146 7. Crowder&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 146 8. Central Arizona&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 131 9. Iowa Central&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 114 10. Odessa&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 109 11. Garden City&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 94 12. College of Southern Idaho&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 85 13. Indian Hills&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 76 14. Fort Hays Tech Northwest&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 59 15. Snow&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;57 16. North Central Texas&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 54 17. Amarillo&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 36 18. Vincennes&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 30 19. Colby&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 24 20. Southern Nevada&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 18&nbsp;&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1729337764844.jpeg" alt="Image Courtesy HutchCC Sports Information" />
 <figcaption>Image Courtesy HutchCC Sports Information</figcaption>
 </figure>HutchCC Sports InformationThe Hutchinson Community College men’s cross country team remained No. 5 in the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association’s NJCAA Division I Men’s Cross Country rankings for the second-straight week.Coming off a third-place finish at the Region 6 Preview on the course of the upcoming Region 6 Championships stayed at No. 5.Hutchinson opened the season No. 10 in the preseason rankings. The Blue Dragons climbed to No. 9 and then jumped four spots to No. 5 after a Top 10 finish in the university division at the Chili Pepper Festival.Dennis Cheroiyut, Cornelius Kogo and Titus Kiprotich have been the top runners for the Dragons this season, including a record-setting performance by Kiprotich last week at the Region 6 Preview.The Blue Dragons are the second-highest ranked KJCCC team in the final regular-season rankings. Butler is fourth and Hutchinson is fifth in the rankings. In the teams’ two matchups at 8,000 meters, each team has played higher than the other once each.Other KJCCC teams ranked are Garden City at No. 11 and Colby at No. 19.Salt Lake and Iowa Western are Nos. 1 and 2, respectively. There are only three points separating the two teams. El Paso is No. 3 in the national rankings.The Blue Dragons will run next at the 2024 Region 6 championships next Friday, October 25 at the Kansas Veterans Home in Winfield.USTFCCCA/NJCAA DIVISION I WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY RANKINGS1. Salt Lake (6)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 196 2. Iowa Western (4)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 193 3. El Paso&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 179 4. Butler&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 172 5. Hutchinson&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 155 6. New Mexico Junior College&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 146 7. Crowder&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 146 8. Central Arizona&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 131 9. Iowa Central&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 114 10. Odessa&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 109 11. Garden City&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 94 12. College of Southern Idaho&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 85 13. Indian Hills&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 76 14. Fort Hays Tech Northwest&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 59 15. Snow&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;57 16. North Central Texas&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 54 17. Amarillo&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 36 18. Vincennes&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 30 19. Colby&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 24 20. Southern Nevada&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 18&nbsp;&nbsp;