The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Chile Pepper Cross Country Festival
Men's Cross Country wins Chile Pepper Festival, Women finish runner-up
10.05.2019 | Track & Field / Cross Country
The Longhorns posted a pair of top-two finishes in Fayetteville Saturday.
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Texas junior Sam Worley finished seventh individually and led the Longhorns to the men's team championship at the Chili Pepper Cross Country Festival on Saturday morning. Senior Destiny Collins also finished in seventh place in the women's competition to lead Texas to a second-place team finish.
Worley ran a time of 23.59.4 over the 8,000-meter course, which led Texas to the first-place team medal with a total of 74 points (5-11-13-14-31). The New Braunfels, Texas native was followed by John Rice, Cruz Gomez, Haftu Knight and Crayton Carrozza in UT's top five.
By winning first place as a team, the Longhorn men finished ahead of two ranked Division I opponents in No. 9 Oklahoma State, which placed third, and No. 25 Arkansas, which finished fifth. Texas received 22 votes in last week's USTFCCCA Men's Cross Country Poll.
"The boys did a really nice job running up through the field today," said UT men's distance coach Pete Watson. "The young guys kept contact with Sam and John early, and Sam and John did a good job of keeping everyone composed. Now we are back to a big training block up until the Big 12 meet."
Collins ran a 5,000-meter time of 16:44.7 as the Longhorn women captured runner-up team honors with a total of 90 points (7-10-11-28-34). Arkansas, ranked No. 2 nationally, won the race with 24 points, sending the first four contestants across the finish line. Behind Collins, the Horns were led by Kathryn Gillespie, Beth Ramos, Claudine Blancaflor and Madeline Vondra.
Texas' second place finish in the women's competition bested No. 19-rated Oklahoma State, which placed fourth Saturday. The Longhorns also finished ahead of third-place West Virginia, which received 16 votes in last week's poll. Texas received nine votes in the last poll.
"The team ran very well today," UT women's distance coach PattiSue Plumer said. "I was especially happy with how they closed. We were in fifth place at about the halfway point and moved up across the board. We still have a lot of work to do but it's a good springboard for the championship part of the season."
Saturday marked UT's third victory on the men's side this season and the fourth time that the Longhorn women have finished in the top two of the team standings.
Players Mentioned
