Cross Country | 10/27/2016 4:31:00 PM
ABILENE - Abilene Christian cross country brings its men's and women's teams to Pecan Acres Park in Nacogdoches near the campus of Stephen F. Austin for the annual Southland Conference Cross Country Championships on Friday, Oct. 28. The men's 8K race is scheduled for an 8:30 a.m. start with the women's 6K race following at 9:30 a.m.
With both teams in the midst of a transition process, ACU's coaching staff is primarily looking to see solid efforts from their rosters on the flat, fast and windy course. There's no expectation for the women to repeat again as conference champions with four runners from last year's team redshirting this fall; however, with the men entering eight runners, there's hope the Wildcats will continue their climb up the standings.
ACU's men placed 10th at their first championship since rejoining the league in 2013, scoring 291 points. In the two previous years they've recorded consecutive ninth-place showings with respective totals of 274 and 250 points.
The next step for the men would be to finish among the upper half of the 12-team standings. And while it will be tough to do, the Wildcats claim several very talented and experienced runners capable of making a significant leap.
Sophomore Travis Nichols has been the Wildcats' top runner much of the fall, leading ACU to the finish line at all four invitationals hosted by Texas Tech, North Texas, Oklahoma State and Incarnate Word. Senior Sterlen Paul actually tied Nichols at North Texas with a four-mile time of 21:11.4 and was the Wildcats' No. 2 runner at OSU and UIW with times of 27:48.4 and 25:09.
Junior Ryan Cleary was ACU's second best runner here a year ago, completing the 8K at Sam Houston State in 26:27.6 for 40th place, but various illnesses and injuries have kept him out of two regular-season meets. He last competed for the Wildcats at the Cowboy Jamboree, finishing with an 8K time of 28:27.4 that put him behind Nichols, Paul and freshman Drew Cummings.
Nichols, Paul and Cummings have been ACU's top runners at the previous two meets and have seen their 1-3 split time dip from :47.5 seconds at OSU to :28 seconds on the much flatter course at Incarnate Word. Nichols ran a 24:46 that morning at Live Oak Park, while Paul completed the course in 25:09 and Cummings in 25:14.
Freshman Lucas Bennett, who was an 800m runner in high school, has recorded three top-five showings for the Wildcats through four meets and went from posting an 8K of 29:12.10 in Lubbock to a 25:59 in San Antonio over the course of one month.
Senior Reid Rivers is the most experienced of Wildcat runners as he prepares to run in his fourth and final conference meet. He was ACU's No. 4 runner at last fall's championship with a career best finish of 71st after coming in 84th the year prior, and this fall he's yet to place lower than sixth (among ACU runners) while posting a one-minute PR on the Incarnate Word course.
Junior John Baker and freshman Alex Jennings may be able to crack the Wildcats' top five. Baker has shown improvement in the overall and team individual standings the last two years at conference, and earlier this year he cracked ACU's top-five at Texas Tech with an 8K of 29:52.5. Jennings had his best race at UIW on Oct. 8, finishing sixth on the team with a mark of 27:18.
The women's team is composed of the minimum five entries, but junior Gabby Thompson has shown terrific improvement and could very well challenge for a spot on an all-conference team. She placed 61st at this race as a freshman in 2014 (23:55.4) and moved all the way up to 43rd last October behind a time of 23:37.8.
Thompson was the only returning Wildcat with any experience, and as such she led her team to the finish line at all four events. Her best overall finish of ninth was recorded at Incarnate Word (22:31), but she also placed among the top-20 at North Texas (19:17.8) and top-30 at Oklahoma State (19:56.1).
Joining Thompson at the conference meet are Sierra Bennett, Natalie Jackson, Gema Sanchez and Hannah Scherr.
Bennett is a senior walk-on who was the Wildcats' No. 2 runner all year, while Jackson settled in as No. 3 runner at Oklahoma State and Incarnate Word. Their 1-3 split time between OSU and UIW narrowed from 1:30.3 to 1:17.
Sanchez is a freshman who is one of only three Wildcats, along with Thompson and Bennett, to compete at all four invites. Her best 6K of 25:38 was clocked at UIW, while her top 5K of 21:04.6 was registered at North Texas.
Scherr is the newest addition to the Wildcats roster, joining them just in time for the UIW Invitational where she recorded a 6K of 30:59.
Both Southland championship races will be streamed on Facebook Live via the Southland Conference Facebook page. Associate Commissioner for Television/Electronic Media Chris Mycoskie will provide stride-by-stride coverage from around the course, with the live broadcast beginning on race day at 8:30 a.m. Central.
The conference awards ceremony will take place immediately after the conclusion of the women's race.
Men's Roster
Travis Nichols
Drew Cummings
Sterlen Paul
Lucas Bennett
Ryan Cleary
Reid Rivers
Alex Jennings
John Baker
Women's Roster
Gabby Thompson
Sierra Bennett
Natalie Jackson
Gema Sanchez
Hannah Scherr
