Lobos Post Strong Showing at Season-Opening Lobo Invitational
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — With the season still young, some of the younger Lobos posted veteran results.
The University of New Mexico men’s and women’s cross-country teams started their 2013 campaigns with strong showings from some of the younger runners at the Lobo Invitational Saturday morning.
Both squads had multiple runners place in the top 15, with the men recording four top-15 finishers and the women claiming three. The men also bested New Mexico State in the dual-scored meet, while the women handled UTEP in one of their dual meets.
For the first time since 2008, the Lobo Invitational was scored, allowing teams to see how they stacked up against their competitors.
The three NCAA Division I schools at the meet — New Mexico, UTEP and New Mexico State — all had their runners’ scores tabulated in a dual-meet fashion, with each team registering round-robin results.
The New Mexico men finished with a split against the Miners and the Aggies, upending New Mexico State but falling to UTEP. The women switched the men’s results as they topped UTEP but not NMSU.
For the men, their season-opening effort was paced by the threesome of Alex Herring, Graham Thomas and JP Cordova, as the trio placed fifth through sixth respectively.
Herring led the Lobos with a time of 15 minutes, 33 seconds over the 5-kilometer course at the UNM North Golf Course. Thomas clocked in at 15:44, while Cordova finished right behind at 15:48.
The men also had 13th-place Kyle Fast Wolf (16:07) and 34th-place Jordan Farrell (16:45) score, while Pierre Malherbe (55th, 18:25) and Logan Rosenberg (56th, 18:26) also placed.
UTEP had the top finisher in Anthony Rotich (14:39), and registered two more finishers in the top three team places. The Miners also defeated NMSU and their top finisher, Nathan Starr (11th, 15:59).
Former Lobo Nicholas Kipruto, who had won the men’s races at the last three Lobo Invitational (once for UNM and twice unattached), placed third.
On the women’s side, Sophia Torres and Stephanie Mladinich helmed the Lobos to their victory over UTEP, with overall finishes of fourth and fifth place, respectively.
Torres ran the women’s 5K in 19:48, while Mladinich clocked at 19:53 time.
Nancy Holguin, Suzi Boast and Kristen Kientz also scored for the women, with Holguin (20:34) finishing 14th overall, Boast (21:21) taking 19th and Kientz (21:46) claiming 24th.
Adriana Lopez (25th, 21:50) and Maya Hena (33rd, 22:56) also ran for the women.
New Mexico State posted the three top finishers — including the first finisher, Diana Hawk (19:14) — and four in the top six.
Overall, each of the Division I school finished 2-2. The Lobo men and women both went 1-1, while UTEP and NMSU both swept a gender and were swept in the other.
The Lobos will now take four weeks off in preparation for the Notre Dame Invitational. UNM’s top runners will make their debuts on October 4 after sitting out the Lobo Invitational.