Women’s XC Contends for a Fourth Place Finish at SWOSU

Weatherford, Okla.—Showing their ability to compete against top-level athletes, the Panhandle State women’s cross country team turned in a fourth place finish as a team at the Western Oklahoma Showcase hosted by Southwestern Oklahoma State University on Saturday, Sept. 8.

Freshman Shayna Glover posted another great outing with a fourth place finish and a 4K time of 15:42.09. Glover beat out runners from Cameron, USAO, SWOSU and Northwestern Oklahoma State. Also running solid races for the Aggie women were Gabriella Ramos (21st-16:46.35), Vanessa Gonzalez (25th – 17:04.28), Naomi Rodriguez (38th – 17:52.41), Sarai Ortega (50th – 18:38.36) and Kiery Fernandez (56th – 20:04.19).

The Aggies went up against two NCAA Division II programs along with two Sooner Athletic Conference opponents, including last year’s women’s cross country SAC Conference Champions and NAIA Championships second-runners up from Oklahoma City University. The Stars finished first as a team and placed a runner on the podium, with Lydia Mato (14:41.88) earning a first place individual finish among the field of 68 women runners.

Panhandle State’s men’s team also took to the course at Rader Park in Weatherford, competing with five other teams in a field of 64 runners. The Aggie men sat sixth in the final team standings, with Cameron University claiming first as a team and CU’s James Majengo taking the top spot individually with a 6K time of 19:07.93. For the Aggies, senior Philip Kirongo marked the lowest time at 23:35.66 for a 44th place finish. Korby Jenkins (24:25.72) came through 53rd followed by Alexis Lopez (25:19.18), Firas Ghazouani (25:24.68) and Baruc Ortega (25:42.26) who placed 55-57 respectively.

Head Coach Denise Levine stated, “I was proud of how we preformed as a team. The course was a bit slick, but we still had a good turnout. We have a few weeks off, and we are looking forward to getting better day by day.”

The Aggies’ next appearance on the course takes place Sept. 29 in Las Vegas, N.M. in the Highlands University Cross Country Jam.