Lake Stevens grad Roe captures Big 12 cross country title

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, October 31, 2023

Taylor Roe has accomplished so much during her collegiate distance running career. But one thing that eluded her was the Big 12 championship.

Not any longer.

The Lake Stevens High School graduate, who’s now a graduate student on the Oklahoma State University women’s cross country and track teams, finally captured her first Big 12 cross country title when she crossed the finish line first at the Big 12 Cross Country Championships on Saturday in Ames, Iowa.

Roe, a seven-time All-American in cross country, indoor track and outdoor track as well as the 2022 indoor national champion in the 3,000 meters, had come achingly close to winning the Big 12 championship each of the past three years, finishing third in 2021 and second in both 2020 and 2022.

But this time Roe claimed the top spot on the podium, completing the 6-kilometer race in a time of 19 minutes, 35.4 seconds, which was seven seconds ahead of teammate Billah Jepkirui, who placed second. The time was the second-fastest 6-kilometer time in school history, just behind the 19.33.5 Roe ran in finishing fifth at the 2021 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships. Roe is Oklahoma State’s first individual women’s cross country champion in the 28-year history of the Big 12.

Roe helped Oklahoma State take second in the team standings. Next up for Roe is the NCAA Midwest Regional Championship on Nov. 10 in Stillwater, Oklahoma.