MADISON, Wis. — In one of the most competitive races of the year, the Lobo women showed they are still a team to watch out for in November.
Behind two top-10 finishers, the University of New Mexico women’s cross country team ran to its second fourth-place finish of the year on Friday, capturing key points for an NCAA bid at the exceptionally competitive Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational Presented by Under Armour.
The Lobo men also ran well, winning the open “B” race at Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course in Madison, Wisconsin.
“It was a great day,” New Mexico head coach Joe Franklin said. “We made a lot of progress. To say that things aren’t going in the right direction would a misstatement. They’re did an unbelievable job.”
Alice Wright and Calli Thackery authored a very similar performance to the Lobos’ last outing at the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational, as Wright nabbed a second-straight runner-up finish and Thackery finished top-10 to power UNM to fourth place in the team standings
Their combined performances Friday helped the 11th-ranked UNM women to key wins over 19 teams either ranked or receiving votes in the most recent edition of the USTFCCCA National Coaches’ Poll.
31 teams make the NCAA Championships — two automatic bids from nine regions plus 13 at-large teams — so the UNM women have put themselves in good position going into the championship season.
“If you look at how both teams have done historically at this meet, the next month of the season looks very positive,” Franklin said.
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| Calli Thackery |
Wright led the women, vying for an individual title for most of the six-kilometer race before eventually claiming second place in 20 minutes, 1.9 seconds. Boise State’s Brenna Peloquin won in 20:00.8, just 1.1 seconds ahead of Wright.
Nonetheless, it’s Wright’s second-straight second-place finish, and it’s the best by a Lobo at this meet, surpassing Courtney Frerichs’ fourth-place finish last year as UNM won in record fashion.
Thackery wasn’t all that far behind Friday, running to ninth place with a time of 20:19.8. She took fifth two weeks ago at Notre Dame, and has continued to provide strong marks for the Lobos.
Sophie Connor (40th place, time of 20:53.6) also scored, with Natasha Bernal (63rd, 21:04.8) and Alex Buck (93rd, 21:20.7) rallying late to furnish the Lobos’ final two scoring runs.
Kathryn Fluehr (110th, 21:32.1), Kendall Kelly (135th, 21:48.7) rounded out the Lobos’ contingent.
“Alice and Calli were very good with Alice challenging for the win,” Franklin said. “They’re proven, elite runners. But what’s more important is the fact you have Sophie Connor, Natasha Bernal, Alex Buck, Kathryn Fluehr and Kendall Kelly running extremely well.”
UNM finished with a team score of 207 points, logging a spread of 1:18.8 between their five scorers.
No. 4 Washington finished with 124 points to claim the upset win, knocking off No. 3 NC State (166 points) and No. 1 Providence (170).
On the men’s side, New Mexico registered a strong team performance, capturing the team title in the men’s open “B” race.
Although this race wasn’t the same caliber at the championship race featuring 18 nationally ranked teams, the youthful Lobos put together a promising showing after struggling two weeks ago at Notre Dame.
“We ran that race so our kids could see each other,” Franklin said. “In the championship race this weekend, you can’t find each other and you can hide, so to speak. But you can’t hide in the ‘B’ race and they were able to fight with other teams and compete with each other.”
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| Jesus Mendoza |
Senior Graham Thomas, who missed Notre Dame due to illness, led the Lobos in the eight-kilometer race, taking seventh overall in 25:06.4. A consistent scorer for UNM last fall, Thomas provided some of the veteran leadership the men’s squad has lacked so far this season.
Finishing closely behind was fellow senior Jesus Mendoza, who crossed the line in 10th place with a time of 25:15.3. It’s the second straight meet Mendoza finished as the Lobos’ No. 2 scorer.
However, New Mexico also earned strong runs from some of its underclassmen, as true freshman Jacob Simonson followed up his team-best performance from Notre Dame with a 15th-place time of 25:26.0 at Wisconsin.
Redshirt junior Zac Castillo (16th, 25:29.6) and redshirt freshman Alexander Palm (17th, 25:31.5) were right behind, rounding out the Lobos’ scoring as all five scorers finished in the top 20.
The men finished with 24 points, 50 clear of second-place Weber State. Although a smaller field than the massive championship race, the men’s open competition featured eight teams and 89 runners.
New Mexico also achieve one of its pre-race goals, limiting its team spread between its five scorers. After a gap of 1:19 at Notre Dame, the Lobos posted a spread of 25.1 seconds Friday.
Jared Garcia (36th, 25:51.4), Adam Cotton (43rd, 26:06.3 in his first race of the year) and Emil Danielsson (55th, 26:29.0) also ran for the UNM men.
The Lobos return to action in two weeks, as they head to Falcon Crest Golf Club in Kuna, Idaho, for the 2016 Mountain West Cross Country Championships on Friday, October 28.