COLUMBIA, Mo. – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi cross country team performed admirably in its biggest test of the 2025 season to date on Friday morning, placing near the top of the standings on both the men's and women's sides amidst some tough competition at the Gans Creek Classic in Missouri.
First to take the course on the day were the men, who competed in the 8K Black race and finished with 193 total points to place in sixth out of 26 teams, behind only UCLA, Ohio State, Illinois-Chicago, Iowa Western CC and Kansas and ahead of power conference opponents in Vanderbilt, Nebraska and Baylor. Freshman
Kye Lowth led the way for the Islanders for the second straight meet, coming in 12
th overall out of more than 250 individual competitors with a time of 23:54.7 that now ranks fifth all-time in program history in the event.
Also finishing in the top 50 alongside Lowth were sophomores
Dominic Kiptum and
Diego Canto, with the two recording placements of 39
th and 49
th with times of 24:20.5 and 24:23.9 respectively. Junior
Mathayo Bundotich made his way into the top 100 in 90
th place after crossing the line in 24:45.6, and senior
Ewan Wheelwright rounded out the top five for A&M-Corpus Christi with a time of 24:50.9 that was good for 107
th.
"That was our best team race in my three years here, and the positive is that as well as we raced, we have better in us as a team," Islanders head coach
Bryan Jackson said on the men's performance. "Individually, Kye's racing leadership is a huge part of our success right now. Diego also put together the best race of his career to date!"
Next up after this was the women's 6k Black race, where the Islanders finished in second place out of 27 teams with a total of 140 points, only coming in behind a Stanford team that currently ranks fifth in the most recent USTFCCCA Division I National Coaches' Poll. This excellent showing was powered by another standout effort from sophomore
Elizabeth Khatevi, with the Kenya native finishing in first place overall out of 236 with a time of 19:58.8 that came in nearly 16 seconds ahead of second-place Evyn Humphrey of Tulsa. This marked Khatevi's third consecutive individual victory to open the season after also doing so at Cross Country at the Seashore on August 29 and the Gerald Richey UTA Invitational on September 5 and her fourth in a row in total after winning the gold medal at last year's Southland Conference Championships.
Khatevi was not the only Islander to show out on the big stage, though, as the team had two more of its runners finish at the top of the pack in freshman
Phylis Kibet and sophomore
Alicia Finnis, who came in eighth and 15
th overall with times of 20:48.6 and 21:02.8 respectively. This was the third straight meet that Kibet and Finnis finished as the team's second- and third-highest placers behind Khatevi, and for the former, her time helped her debut at No. 6 in program history in the event.
The other finishers for A&M-Corpus Christi were freshman
Sharon Jemeli and junior
Faith Ramos, who crossed the line with times of 21:59.8 and 22:17.0 to take home placements of 79
th and 100
th respectively. Jemeli's effort helped bring her streak of earning points for the team up to three meets in a row, and Ramos made her way into the top five for the first time in 2025.
'It was a fantastic day for these ladies!" Jackson said. "Our top three give us the chance to beat anyone, and that showed today. It takes five, though, and Sharon and Faith ran very tough to move us from fourth to third and then to second in the final 2k. I am beyond proud of how all our Islanders represent on this stage!"
The Islanders will now start their preparations for their regular season finale, taking three weeks off before returning to action on October 17 for the Arturo Barrios Invitational, hosted by Texas A&M.
Men's Individual Times
12.
Kye Lowth: 23:54.7
39.
Dominic Kiptum: 24:20.5
49.
Diego Canto: 24:23.9
90.
Mathayo Bundotich: 24:45.6
107.
Ewan Wheelwright: 24:50.9
132.
Andrew Rivas: 25:01.9
Women's Individual Times
1.
Elizabeth Khatevi: 19:58.8
8.
Phylis Kibet: 20:48.6
15.
Alicia Finnis: 21:02.8
71.
Sharon Jemeli: 21:59.8
100.
Faith Ramos: 22:17.0
182.
Embla Hreimsdottir: 23:39.1
210.
Abbey Coberly: 24:24.7
214.
Neele Heyne: 24:30.4
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