Texan Cross Country Wins Region 5 Championship

ROSWELL, N.M. - The South Plains College Texans dominated the field and came within three points of a perfect team score on their way to claiming the Region 5 cross country championship in Roswell, New Mexico on Saturday.

Led by Tallam Kipruto's winning time of 25:58.00, the Texans claimed the top four spots in the race. Mitchell Driver covered the 8,000-meter course in 26:55, while Anthony Pequeno (27:13) and Tomilee Loyd (27:43) were third and fourth. Robert Castanon finished eighth overall in 28:20.

Marcelis Lynch (31:13) and Josh Harris (31:16) also competed for the Texans, finishing 23rdand 24th, respectively.

Led by freshman Lisa Forsberg, the Lady Texans finished second in the team standings with 57 points. Forsberg finished the race third overall, completing the 5,000-meter course in 18:42.00. Shayla Contreras (19:15) was ninth overall, while Paulina Wilson (19:40) and Kadian Dunkley (19:44) finished 13th and 14th. Crystal Dickinson (20:54) completed the team scoring with her 19th place finish.

Lorianne Pattee (22:15) finished 29th overall.

The cross country teams now have a week to prepare before the compete in the NJCAA cross country championships on November 14th in Peoria, Illinois.