Bearcats reload with Bach leading program
JON DYKSTRA/THE FORUM
Northwest’s Grayson Tapp runs at a 2024 meet in St. Joseph.
MARYVILLE, Mo. – The Northwest Missouri Sate cross country program has set the bar high for themselves in recent years. Clearing that bar will be the responsibility of new coach Myles Bach.
“I’m really excited to be here having run in the conference and coached in the conference, I know the kind of history and success the program has had,” Bach said. “I’m really excited to be leading this group that’s had so much success the last few years.”
Bach ran cross country at the University of Nebraska-Kearney where he was a national qualifier. The former Loper comes after being an assistant coach at Washburn last year.
Bach will replace Wick Cunningham, who leaves after winning back-to-back conference championships. The Bearcats also finished in the top-25 nationally over the past three seasons, including a 10th place finish in 2024 and a Central Region Championship last year.
Now Bach will be tasked with replacing the team’s strongest performers from a season ago.
“We had eight guys graduate and eight guys transfer, so it’s a clean slate and a fresh start,” Bach said. “It’s a complete rebuild, so that means getting back to recruiting high school runners. I think the big thing is recruiting high school kids that you can develop over four years.”
Northwest won the 2025 MIAA championship with 54 points, finishing ahead of Pittsburg State’s 67. Aziz Mohammed won the individual championship and Drew Atkins finished second, while John Langill, Grayson Tapp and Maxime Touron also finished among the top 25 with Tapp being the only runner returning this season.
Tapp returns for his senior season as the top runner on the men’s team. He finished 16th at the MIAA Championships in 25:21.9, then ran 31:22.4 for 20th at the NCAA Central Region Championships, earning USTFCCCA All-Region honors. Tapp followed that with 31:48.2 at the NCAA Division II Championships where Northwest finished 11th nationally.
“Tapp has been on a couple of national qualifying teams, so I think he’s ready to step up and lead,” Bach said.
Maryville High School graduate Bradley Deering returns for his sophomore season. Deering performed well this winter with a ninth-place finish in the 8k at the Griffon Invite in October.
Deering took 13th in the 2026 Coach Alsup Invite and 25th in the Bearcat Invite in early February.
Alex Jackson could play a large part in how the men do this season. Jackson ran 28:31.6 at the Woody Greeno/Jay Dirksen Invitational and 28:52.0 at the Griffon Invite in 2025.
The women’s team brings a large roster into the season with 18 runners on the roster. Junior Olivia Bakker headlines the group after a strong sophomore season.
She finished fifth at the 2025 MIAA Championships in 21:41.8, ninth at the Central Region Championships in 21:15.8, and qualified individually for the NCAA Championships, where she placed 52nd in 21:18.1.
Mayson Hartley is also in contention to be the teams most talented runners. She earned USTFCCCA All-Region honors after finishing 24th at the Central Region Championships in 21:47.9.
“I think those two are the leaders of the team,” Bach said. “They’ve had a lot of success, and I think the women’s team is about the time of the peak and making sure we build up to the championship season and making sure we’re running our best at the regional meet.”
Northwest will begin the season Sept. 4 at the Griffon Invite at Missouri Western.
“I think year one is about going through the adjustments and going through those growing pains,” Bach said. “If we can get the group to buy into the process and how we want to do things, we can worry about the outcome of the results down the road.”
