The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Bear Twilight Invitational
Cross Country preview: Bear Twilight Invitational
08.29.2019 | Track & Field / Cross Country
The Longhorns are set to open the 2019 season Friday in Waco.
Texas (RV) Men and (RV) Women in Bear Twilight Invitational
August 30, 2019
Where: Waco, Texas
Course: Heart of Texas Soccer Complex, 6101 Airport Road, Waco, Texas 76708
Opponents: Baylor, TCU, UTA for both squads. SMU will also run in the women's race.
Length: Men 6k, Women 4k
Time: Women 7 p.m. CT. Men's race starts upon completion of the women's race.
Results: No broadcast or live stats. Results will be posted to www.TexasSports.com.
MEET INFO
AUSTIN, Texas – The University of Texas Cross Country teams begin their seasons Friday evening in the Bear Twilight Invitational at the Heart of Texas Soccer Complex in Waco, Texas. The UT women start their 4,000-meter race at 7 p.m. CT and the men's 6,000-meter event follows immediately afterward.
The Longhorns will complete against UTA, TCU and host Baylor in both races. SMU will also run in the women's competition. Texas, fresh off of a week-long pre-season camp in Park City, Utah, will enter its full squads in both the women's and men's competitions.
On the women's side, UT returns four runners who qualified for last year's NCAA Cross Country Championships: Destiny Collins, Abby Guidry, Olivia Thompson and Madeline Vondra. Texas finished fifth at the 2018 Big 12 Championship meet and second in the NCAA South Central Regional. The Horns are ranked second in the South Central Region by the 2019 pre-season poll of the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. The Longhorn women received 19 votes in the Association's national pre-season poll.
"We had a wonderful time in Utah. The weather was perfect and the trails challenging," women's coach PattiSue Plumer said of the team's week out in Utah. "We got a lot of good work done out there, and now this week is my first opportunity to see a number of new faces in competition. We have 11 new people on our roster who have never competed for Texas."
On the men's side, UT returns four runners who competed in last year's NCAA Cross Country Championships: Garek Bielaczyc, Jake Johnson, John Rice and Sam Worley. Texas finished third at the 2018 Big 12 Championship meet and second in the NCAA South Central Regional. The Horns are ranked second in the South Central Region by the 2019 USTFCCCA pre-season poll. The Longhorn men received 23 votes in the Association's national pre-season poll.
"We're going up to Baylor to get a good, hard run in," men's coach Pete Watson said of this week's Twilight Invitational. "Obviously, every time we put on the jersey we want to win, but it's going to be a team effort, rather than seeing where everyone is individually."
This will be the first of two trips to Waco this season for the Texas Cross Country teams. On Nov. 2, the men's and women's teams will compete in the Big 12 Championship meet, which will be held at Cottonwood Creek Golf Course.
Players Mentioned
