STEPHENVILLE — Tarleton State Cross Country placed three individuals in the top seven in the men’s and women’s 5K races at the Gerald Richey Invitational at the Harold Patterson Sports Complex.
The men’s squad turned in a fourth-place finish, with the women earning fifth. The men were led by a pair of top 10 finishes by freshman Tyler Hedgepeth and Jerryth Buckingham. On the women’s front, Kaitlyn Gale led the charge crossing in seventh.
“It was good to have both of our squads racing together today,” said distance coach Chris Zent. “Tyler Hedgepeth continues to perform well as a freshman, and Jerryth Buckingham performed very well for his first cross country race since 2022. For the women, Kaitlyn Gale set the tone for continued improvement for the group. We are looking forward to some quality training over the next month before we head to Arkansas and the Chile Pepper Classic.”
Men
Hedgepeth led the way for the men in his second race of the season. Buckingham ran with him just behind the lead pack for the majority of the race. Hedgepeth earned his second-straight sixth-place finish to start the season. The freshman crossed in 15:13.60 with Buckingham following closely behind in 15:15.60. Friday marked the first cross country race for Buckingham since Oct. 29, 2022, after missing the past two seasons due to injury.
The third Texan to cross was Diego Flores. Flores finished 18th overall in 15:24.80. Following behind him was freshman Mez Barth who crossed in 26th place in 15:36.60. Barth ran nearly 30 seconds faster than his collegiate debut last weekend at the John McKenzie Invitational. The last scoring Texan to cross was Jace Poole who crossed in 35th. Poole clocked in at 15:42.10. Michael Lopez and AJ Alfaro crossed in 44th and 47th place for the Texans as well. Kellen Frickel followed tightly behind finishing in 16:07.30.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi’s Kyle Lowth earned the individual title as one of two men to post a sub-15 minute time. The host school UT Arlington took home the team title with 55 points. The Islanders were a point behind with 56, and ACU was right behind with 59 points. The Texans finished in fourth with 89 ahead of both Baylor and TCU.
Women
Gale led the charge for the Texans placing seventh overall in her season debut meet in 18:01.40. Gale climbed through the pack to catch the lead group by the end of the race. Freshman Victoria Guerrero secured her second top 20 finish in back-to-back meets as the next Texan to cross. The Katy, Tex., native placed 19th in 18:32.90.
Coming in just behind Guerrero, Madelyn Hunter clocked in at 18:57.60 to be the third Texan across the line. Hunter finished 27th overall. Rounding out the scoring Texans, Carley Thornton and Allie Brown finished in 43rd and 48th, respectively. Freshman Kaylee Gray crossed 69th overall.
Texas A&M Corpus Christi’s Elizabeth Khatevi won the individual crown in 16:36.80. The Islanders won the team title on the women’s side with 33 total points. TCU and UT Arlington rounded out the top three teams. The Texans 133 points was ahead of WAC foe, Abilene Christian who totaled, 169.
The Texans will have a lengthy break before hitting the course again. Tarleton State will be back in action on October 4th at the Chile Pepper Festival in Fayetteville, Ark. hosted by the Arkansas Razorbacks. The Texans will be competing at the Agri Park Cross Country Course, which will be the site of the 2025 South Central NCAA Regional Meet as well.
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