COLUMBIA, Mo. – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi cross country program wrapped up competition at the 2026 Gans Creek Classic on Friday morning, racing against stiff competition and seeing a runner-up performance from junior
Elizabeth Khatevi highlight the day on both sides.
In her first meet of the new season, Khatevi picked up right where she left off from her historic 2025 campaign in which she won both the Southland Conference and NCAA South Central Regional Championships and took home 46
th place at the NCAA Cross Country Championships, finishing in second in the 6K Gold race with a time of 19:03.6 that ranked behind only Isca Chelangat of Arkansas's mark of 18:58.4. The Kenyan stayed near the top of the pack and improved her placing at nearly every 1000-meter split, rising from ninth at the 1k up to fourth at the 5k and surpassing a pair of racers to secure herself the silver medal.
Khatevi's time was a big improvement on her mark from the same meet last year, when she posted a 19:58.8 on her way to the individual victory in the 6K Black race. It also went down as her second-best 6K time since joining the program, sitting just behind the 18:56.1 that got her the win at the Arturo Barrios Invitational in College Station last year.
"Individually, Elizabeth stole the show once again," Islanders head coach
Bryan Jackson said. "She continues to show that she is one of the best competitors in the NCAA. Today was important for her development toward her goals for this season."
With Khatevi's performance as the anchor, the Islander women finished 17
th out of 29 in a stacked field, placing ahead of power conference schools Kansas State, Texas, Cincinnati and Iowa. Two other athletes found themselves in top 100 in the field individually, with
Phylis Kibet coming in 41
st with a time of 20:34.1 and
Caroline Yegon following up her win at the Aggie Opener by coming in 94
th after crossing the line in 21:12.3. The last remaining points scorers for the team ended up being
Embla Hreimsdottir, who placed 151
st with a time of 21:40.1, and
Neele Heyne, who came in not far behind at 21:53.4 to finish 157
th.
Following the women's race was the men's 8K Gold, where A&M-Corpus Christi came in 23
rd as a unit while also surpassing Iowa and in-state opponent Rice. For the second straight meet, the Islanders' top finisher was
Diego Canto, who placed 81
st with a time of 24:05.2 that was a nearly 20 second improvement on his mark of 24:23.9 from the 2025 Gans Creek Classic. Right on his heels was
Mathayo Bundotich in his first race of the year, with the former SLC individual champion coming in 85
th after crossing the line three seconds later in 24:08.1.
Also ranking in the top 100 for the men was
Brendan DiStefano, who logged a 94
th-place finish with a time of 24:14.3 in what was his first meet with the team after transferring in prior to the start of the school year.
Dillon Smith was the fourth finisher for the Islanders in 156th with a time of 24:50.2, and
Dominic Kiptum rounded out the points scorers by finishing at 25:00.2 for 174
th.
"We have a ton of positives to walk away from this opportunity," Jackson said. "I am very pleased with how we are wrapping up September. Both teams outperformed our results from this meet last year, but the best part is we have a lot we can learn from and grow from. While beating Texas on the women's side is great to show last year's regional win over them was no accident, we have the ability to grow into an even better and more dangerous team if we learn from today."
The Islanders will now take the next three weeks to prepare for their final meet of the regular season, traveling back to College Station to compete at the Arturo Barrios Invitational on October 16.
Women's Results
2.
Elizabeth Khatevi: 19:03.6
41.
Phylis Kibet: 20:34.1
94.
Caroline Yegon: 21:12.3
151.
Embla Hreimsdottir: 21:40.1
172.
Neele Heyne: 21:53.4
211.
Brooklyn Albert: 22:26.2
235.
Abigail Kelley: 22:55.7
244.
Abbey Coberly: 23:37.5
Men's Results
81.
Diego Canto: 24:05.2
85.
Mathayo Bundotich: 24:08.1
94.
Brendan DiStefano: 24:14.3
156.
Dillon Smith: 24:50.2
174.
Dominic Kiptum: 25:00.2
220.
Andrew Rivas: 25:33.3
236.
Gary Custer: 25:54.0
247.
Noah Fernandez: 26:24.4
251.
Coulson Boyd: 26:36.6
253.
Philip Jensen e Castro: 26:42.9
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