Cross Country Turns Attention to Arturo Barrios Invitational

COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- After a well-deserved week off following a first-place sweep at the McNeese Cowboy Stampede a fortnight ago, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Cross Country program aims to make a splash at the inaugural Arturo Barrios Invitational, set for Saturday, Oct. 13 at Texas A&M University. The Islanders are set to compete against a massive 30-team field, including nationally-ranked squads Oklahoma State (men No. 24, women No. 29) and Middle Tennessee State (men No. 28), in what is widely considered the South Central region's premier event.

The men's 8,000m race kicks off competition at 9:00 a.m. while the women's 6,000m follows 45 minutes later at 9:45 a.m., both spanning courses surrounding Texas A&M's Hildebrand Equine Complex.

Under the direction of second-year coach Brent Ericksen, the Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi Cross Country team dismantled a relatively large competitive group at the Lake Charles Toyota McNeese Cowboy Stampede on Sept. 29, sweeping first-place across both the men's and women's fields. The Islanders managed to place three runners in the top five of both fields with senior Allyson Girard outpacing the entire women's race by an impressive 55.0 seconds, notching her first individual win of the season and Southland Cross Country Women's Athlete of the Week honors.

Girard's fellow seniors Cynthia Quiroga and Samantha Miller captured third and fifth, respectively, while junior Morgan McCutchen and sophomore Valentina Campos rounded out the scoring runners at sixth and ninth. Despite not factoring into the final scoring decision, a pair of freshman -- Alana Blankenship and Marissa Martinez -- also ran a strong meet, placing 18th and 24th on the final leaderboard.

On the men's side, junior college transfer Oscar Leyva confirmed his season-opening individual win at the Rice Invitational was no fluke, earning a second-place finish. Less than 30.0 seconds off the leader's time, sophomore Isaac Vargas and senior Marek Spriestersbach placed fourth and fifth, respectively, while senior Steven Galli and freshman Matthew Lara closed out scoring finishes at eighth and 20th. 

With the Arturo Barrios Invitational serving as Texas A&M-Corpus Christi's final major event of the regular season, the Islanders will shift their focus immediately afterward towards the all-important Southland Conference Championships, set to kickoff on Oct. 26 at Lake Charles, La.

For more information on Islanders Cross Country, follow the team on Twitter (@IslandersTFXC), Instagram (@IslandersTFXC) and like their Facebook page (Islanders Track & Field/Cross Country).



Racing Field
*Texas A&M (M/W)
Oklahoma State (M/W)
Middle Tennessee State (M/W)
Florda (M/W)
LSU (M/W)
Mississippi State (M/W)
Tennessee (M)
Vanderbilt (M/W)
Baylor (M/W)
Oklahoma (M/W)
TCU (M/W)
Texas (M/W)
Texas Tech (M/W)
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (M/W)
Cal Baptist (M/W)
Houston Baptist (M/W)
Louisiana-Lafayette (M/W)
McNeese State (M/W)
North Texas (M/W)
Prairie View A&M (M)
Rice (M)
Sam Houston State (M/W)
Stephen F. Austin (M/W)
SMU (W)
UT-Arlington (M/W)
Texas Southern (M)
Texas State (M/W)
University of Guelph (M/W)
UTRGV (M/W)
UTSA (M/W)

* -- Host