SAN ANTONIO — The UTSA men’s and women’s cross country teams will open the 2023 season at the UIW Invitational on Saturday morning at Windcrest Golf Club (8600 Midcrown Dr. Windcrest, Texas).
The meet will open with the men’s 8,000-meter run at 8 a.m. followed by the women’s 6k at 8:40 a.m. Results will be posted online at http://www.chuckscore.com.
The Roadrunners will run against host and crosstown rival UIW, along with Houston Christian, Texas State, UTRGV, El Paso Community College, OLLU, Texas A&M-Kingsville, Trinity (TX) and Texas A&M International.
UTSA is set to open an exciting season, earning rankings in the USTFCCCA South Central Regional preseason rankings. The men’s squad clocked in at No. 13 in the region, their first preseason regional ranking since 2016. The women’s team found themselves at No. 15 in the south central, their first preseason regional ranking since 2018.
Abby Balli was the top returning finisher at the annual meet last year, which was held on Oct. 1, 2022, crossing the finish line in 23:26.9 to take 15th place. Chante Dixon followed shortly after at 23:32.6 and 17th, while Luzaan De Wit rounded out the top-20 finishers with a time of 23:37.4. Other returnees who competed in last year’s meet include Savannah Lopez (23:49.3, 26th), Brooke Veltman (24:19.0, 32nd) and Sidnee Bravo (25:15.2, 51st).
On the men’s side, Colton Stunkard finished fifth overall with a time of 25:10.3, leading the team to a third place finish. Idol Ramon crossed the finish line in 26:12.2, good for a 28th place finish. Other returnees who competed in last year’s meet include Caden Cunningham (26:42.5, 43rd) and OJ Ruiz (27:00.5, 49th).
The Roadrunners head to Salem, Oregon, on Sept. 30 to race in the Willamette Invitational, hosted by Willamette University, before returning to the Lone Star State on Oct. 13 to compete in Texas A&M’s Arturo Barrios Invitational.
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