Ready, set, run!

One year ago, the UTRGV Men’s and Women’s Cross-Country teams welcomed a new head coach to the program, Darren Flowers.

Last year was a season of adjustments for Flowers and the teams. Flowers said his first year as a coach was difficult because he was getting accustomed to the teams and the teams were getting accustomed to him.

“The fall was tough, it was a tough transition,” Flowers said. “I think they were still kind of feeling me out like, ‘Huh, what’s this guy all about?’ After we got to a certain point in the fall, I’d say November or December, we started turning a corner and we saw a lot of improvement in the kids.”  

Both teams are ready to showcase what Flowers has instilled in them.

Leading the team on the women’s side is senior Jennifer Zapata. Zapata’s main goal for the team is to create strong connections among its members.

“Team bonding is something that we need to keep working on,” Zapata said.“Bonding, everybody feeling that they have a purpose in the team and they have to contribute to the team.”

Following Zapata’s footsteps is senior Thalia Polanco, who competed in six meets during the 2017 season. Her top two finishes included 119th in the 6,000-meter race at the NCAA South Central Regional Championships and 44th in the 5,000-meter race at the Western Athletic Conference Championships.

Juniors Bryana Rios, Alma Villanueva and Monica Yañez are hoping to contribute their part to the success of the team.

In the 2017 season, Rios competed in six meets, including the 6,000-meter race in the NCAA meet, where she finished 138th. At the WAC Championships, she posted a 49th-place finish in the 5,000-meter race.

Villanueva finished in 144th place at NCAA with a time of 23:14.6. At the WAC Championships, Villanueva placed 37th.

Rounding out the list of juniors is Yañez, who competed in five meets last season. At the WAC Championships, she finished the 5,000-meter race with a time of 21:00, which positioned her in 52nd place. Her top finish came at the Islander Splash in Corpus Christi, where she placed 20th.

Kelly Aguiñaga and Adrianna Cruz are the sophomores on the team. As a freshman, Aguiñaga ran in six meets, including the NCAA and WAC Championships. At NCAA, she crossed the finish line with a 157th-place finish and came in 36th at the WAC championships.

This season, the team is welcoming nine female athletes to the program: sophomore Lauren Asiedu of Austin, who previously ran at Abilene Christian University; junior Sierra Spinler of Blue Springs, Mo.; and freshmen Mercy Chelangat, Dorcas Chepkogei and Sharon Koima of Kenya; Kyra Keurentjes of Wehl, Netherlands; Monica Rivera of Eagle Pass; Anahi Romo of Del Rio and Oma Sanchez of Palmview.

Coach Flowers said the freshmen coming into the team can play a vital role in the success of the women’s team.

“On the women’s side, freshmen can definitely make a big impact on this team,” Flowers said. “For our women’s team, I really do expect those freshmen to come in and contribute big.”

Flowers is looking for the same success to happen on the men’s side, although it can be a tough transition for the newcomers.

“We have a lot of good talent coming in,” Flowers said. “It’s a lot harder for freshmen on the guys side just because the jump to 10k, from 5k to 10k, is so big, so it does take a little bit of time for the freshmen to really make an impact but we’re hoping that some of them can get in there and help us.”

The freshmen looking forward to the challenge are Abraham Chirchir of Iten, Kenya, and Antoine Godin from Toulouse, France.

Valley natives Fernando Escobar and Edward Ramos of Harlingen, Cosme Ibarra of Donna and Tristan Peña of Edinburg.

Taking the freshmen under their wing are seniors Omer Almog, Isaac Arevalo, Alberto Herrera, Mathew Peynado and Brian Yañez.

This will be the first year of competition for Almog with the program.

Arevalo and Herrera are no strangers to the program. In 2017, Arevalo competed in five meets. His best performance was at the WAC Indoor Championships, where he contributed to a second-place finish in the distance medley relay team.

Herrera competed in six meets during the previous season. He obtained an 83rd-place finish at NCAA in the 10,000-meter race with a time of 32:16.2. At the WAC Championships, he landed a 20th-place finish in the 8,000-meter race.

Rounding out the list of seniors are Peynado and Yañez, who both made an appearance at the NCAA meet and WAC Championships. At NCAA, Peynado came in 133rd and finished in 30th place at WAC. Yañez finished in 77th at NCAA and 32nd at WAC.

The juniors for the team are Ricardo Mendoza and Carlos Roguera. Both men competed at only two meets. Mendoza ran at the annual Chile Pepper Festival and the Islander Splash. Roguera competed at the Islander Splash and the Texas A&M University Aggie Opener.

Completing the team are sophomores Mikel Escobar, Juan Manzano and Jose Serna. Escobar competed in two meets, which included the Islander Splash (20th place) and Aggie Opener (57th). Manzano ran in six meets, including the NCAA meet, where he came in 143rd. Serna placed 137th at NCAA.

Both teams began their season last Friday at the Aggie Opener in College Station.