Cross Country | 10/2/2023 4:57:00 PM
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Bulldog Cross Country teams competed in the University of Arkansas Chile Pepper Cross Country Festival on a scorching Friday (Sep. 29) in Fayetteville, Ark.
In one of the hottest meets temperature-wise, the Bulldogs battled to top-half team results against top-notch competition in one of the largest meets in the country. The Bulldog women finished 15th in the 34-team field. The Men finished 19th in the 38-team field.
Samantha Thompson (21:21) led the women's team for the 2nd time this season in 41st place, a 93-place improvement from last season at the same meet. She was followed by Amari Robb (22:38), who had an outstanding day, finishing 83rd. Brooke Krapes (24:21) finished 117th, Johanna Walker (24:28) had an inspiring race in 119th, and Kamryn Nolan (27:33) ran a season-best time and placed 153rd, in a meet where Season's Bests were not the norm.
The men had a difficult task ahead of them, running 8000 meters in 90-degree-plus temperatures, featuring 38 schools. Azariah Gonzalez (28:47) led the Bulldogs for the 4th straight meet in 68th place. Brock Lauer (30:32) in his first race back from an injury was the 2nd team finisher in 127th, followed closely by Reagan Thai (30:35) in 130th. Cody Kuss (30:54) and Paul Choi (32:44) rounded out the scoring, finishing 145th and 189th respectively.
The Bulldogs gear up for their home meet, the Carol Swenson Cross Country Invite on Saturday (Oct. 7). Women race at 9:00 a.m., while the Men race at 9:45 am.
