UTRGV Women’s Cross Country team members Jennifer Zapata (from left), Bryana Rios, Alma Villanueva, Ana Bautista and Michelle Flores practice last Tuesday morning at the Edinburg Municipal Park.
BY Nathaniel Mata | SPORTS EDITOR
UTRGV Women’s Cross Country team members Jennifer Zapata (from left), Bryana Rios, Alma Villanueva, Ana Bautista and Michelle Flores practice last Tuesday morning at the Edinburg Municipal Park.
Over the summer and throughout the fall, members of UTRGV Cross Country teams and the coaching staff have had Oct. 29 circled on their calendar.
Saturday morning in Seattle, the top-distance runners from Western Athletic Conference schools will compete for conference supremacy and have a chance to continue their season in the regional meet.
Historically, UTRGV and its legacy institution UT Pan American have not performed well during cross-country conference meets. The men’s cross-country team has not won a conference championship since 2008 and the women’s last title was in 1990. Both championships came years before joining the WAC, with different personnel on the team and coaching.
In two seasons competing in the WAC, women’s cross-country has finished sixth out of eight teams.
However, this year’s group of women hopes to break that barrier. There are some positives coming to the meets in preparation for conference. Cross-country and track and field hired a new assistant coach, Parker Cowles. He joins the staff after coaching at the U.S. Air Force Academy and his impact is evident.
The women earned their first regional ranking this season from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCA).
They currently hold the 10th position in the South Central Region, ahead of schools such as the University of Houston and Louisiana State University.
Fourth-year cross-country (and track and field) Head Coach Xavier Richardson said there isn’t more pressure with a regional rank; it only helps the women.
“I don’t think it adds too much pressure,” Richardson said. “I think it does help boost their confidence to see that the work that they’re putting in really is paying off and people have been noticing that.”
Junior distance runner Jennifer Zapata echoed her coach’s words. She contributed to the team’s rank with a personal record Oct. 1, running a 17:59.96 in the 5,000-meter race. The Los Fresnos native said she thinks team recognition is a long time coming.
“It definitely helps. It’s about time that we get recognized,” Zapata said. “We’ve been working hard since my freshman year, and I know the girls have been working hard, too. We definitely want to win and be recognized by other teams.”
Zapata, who is only one of three upperclassmen on a team with 12 runners, spoke with veteran experience when asked if the team ever looks at the times of other teams in the WAC.
“In the beginning of the season, we worry about our own rankings and where we stand,” she said. “As conference comes closer, we start focusing more on what we have to place, what we have to get, who we have to beat to be on top.”
On the men’s side, there is room for improvement over previous seasons as well. The first two years of WAC cross-country were consecutive second-to-last finishes.
UTRGV lost its top runner, Jose Juan Wells, to graduation, but this season, it’s made additions and hopes to spark improvement. The additions include three freshmen as well as Weslaco East sophomore Alberto Herrera, who transfers to Edinburg after spending his freshman year running for University of Arkansas at Little Rock.
Herrera’s adjustment back to the Rio Grande Valley came naturally. The sophomore already has one WAC Runner of the Week title under his belt since joining the program. He said fitting in on the team was a smooth process for him.
“I fit in pretty easy, definitely different than my first college team at Arkansas, but in some ways, it’s kind of the same as my high school team. I connect more to these guys,” he said.
Herrera knows success at important meets from his high school career, qualifying for state in three consecutive seasons and winning the District 31-6A title in 2014 as a member of the Wildcats Cross Country Team.
Asked how he ensures the conference meet is his best race yet, his answer was anecdotal.
“That whole week, I make sure I’m eating right, drinking enough water and I’m sleeping right,” Herrera said. “I just prepare for it mentally and envision myself doing what I want to do on the day of the race.”
UTRGV will travel northwest to race in 50-degree weather this weekend and hopes to return to the Valley with hardware and an extended season.
WAC member Seattle University will host the meet at the Jefferson Park Golf Course.
