SHAWNEE, OK: The Texas Wesleyan University men and women's cross country teams competed at the Sooner Athletic Conference Championship on Saturday. Four Rams punched their ticket to compete at the NAIA National Championship in in Vancouver.
The top team and top-15 individuals from both the women's 5K and men's 8K earned automatic bids to Nationals.
In the women's 5K, Texas Wesleyan's
Melissa Gonzalez,
Ray Vidales, and
Alex Barrientez finished 13th, 14th, and 15th respectively. Gonzalez crossed the line in 19:46.59. Vidales ran 19:53.30, and Barrientez ran 19:58.27.
Oklahoma City placed three runners in the top-5 to win with a score of 23. Wayland Baptist was second at 33 points and the Rams were third with 83. OCU's Aminat Olowora set the pace for 69 individuals with a time of 16:58.06.
Texas Wesleyan's
Brianna Alexander,
Chloe Riley, and
Maria Guillen finished 20th, 21st, and 22nd respectively.
In the men's race,
Jonathan Swiatocha turned in the third fastest time ever run by a Ram in a conference championship at 25:50.72. That was good for 6th place and a trip to Vancouver.
Oklahoma City again took the team win with three of the top-5 finishers and a total of 24 points. The Stars' Mark Shaw was the individual champion amongst 76 runners, completing the course in 24:36.80.
Fernando Orellana finished 32nd, while
Alan Ramirez placed 33rd and
Jarod Sweetland finished 45th for the Rams.
After the race, Head Coach
Natnael Amare was proud of his team. "I'm very proud of this group," Amare said. "They run with a big heart and give it everything they've got."
The NAIA National Championship will be held at the Fort Vancouver National Historic Championship Course on Saturday, Nov. 18, and can be viewed live on NAIANetwork.com.
Texas Wesleyan Results
Women
13
Melissa Gonzalez 19:46.59
14
Ray Vidales 19:53.30
15
Alex Barrientez 19:58.27
20
Brianna Alexander 20:22.87
21
Chloe Riley 20:35.24
22
Maria Guillen 20:39.69
Men
6
Jonathan Swiatocha 25:50.72
32
Fernando Orellana 27:41.98
33
Alan Ramirez 27:42.97
45
Jarod Sweetland 28:42.83
