Friday, September 20
St. Paul, Minn.
10 AM
University of North Texas
vs
Roy Griak Invitational
Lopez de Escalera, Bartek Lead UNT XC at Roy Griak Invitational
9/20/2024 12:13:00 PM | Track & Field/XC
FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn. – Ximena Lopez de Escalera and Connor Bartek led the UNT cross country teams at the historic Roy Griak Invitational hosted by the University of Minnesota Friday morning.
Lopez de Escalera finished 36th in her first career 6K with a time of 22:35.8. Following her, London Culbreath placed 85th with a time of 23:27.1, Betty Bajika clocked a 23:29.5 in 88th place and Trinity Trotter took 113th place at 23:52.5. A trio of true freshmen battled for the fifth spot counting toward the 14th-place team finish, which ended up being Destiny Hernandez in 138th place at 23:52.5.
"I thought the ladies raced competitively," head coach Erik Stevens said. "We have to work on getting into positions a little bit better and being able to stick through it when it starts to get tough. That is something we will be working on over the next several weeks getting into the back half of the season."
The men's team finished in 15h place of the team standings, led by Bartek's 39th place finish. His time of 25:53.1 narrowly missed his personal best in the 8K he set last season at the Texas A&M Invitational.
Victor Neiva was second across the finish line for North Texas with a time of 26:08.7. Neiva sat in third place at the 3,000-meter mark but faded to a 58th-place finish. Other results for the men included Matthew Norton in 92nd place at 26:40.3, Matthew Montgomery in 127th with a time of 27:09.0 and Joseph Wienen crossing 131st to round out the men's five scorers.
Up next for the Mean Green will be a lengthy break lasting until the Arturo Barrios Invitational Oct. 18 in College Station, Texas. Following that meet will be the start of postseason competition with the AAC Championships on Nov. 2 and the NCAA South Central Regional on Nov. 15.
Lopez de Escalera finished 36th in her first career 6K with a time of 22:35.8. Following her, London Culbreath placed 85th with a time of 23:27.1, Betty Bajika clocked a 23:29.5 in 88th place and Trinity Trotter took 113th place at 23:52.5. A trio of true freshmen battled for the fifth spot counting toward the 14th-place team finish, which ended up being Destiny Hernandez in 138th place at 23:52.5.
"I thought the ladies raced competitively," head coach Erik Stevens said. "We have to work on getting into positions a little bit better and being able to stick through it when it starts to get tough. That is something we will be working on over the next several weeks getting into the back half of the season."
The men's team finished in 15h place of the team standings, led by Bartek's 39th place finish. His time of 25:53.1 narrowly missed his personal best in the 8K he set last season at the Texas A&M Invitational.
Victor Neiva was second across the finish line for North Texas with a time of 26:08.7. Neiva sat in third place at the 3,000-meter mark but faded to a 58th-place finish. Other results for the men included Matthew Norton in 92nd place at 26:40.3, Matthew Montgomery in 127th with a time of 27:09.0 and Joseph Wienen crossing 131st to round out the men's five scorers.
Up next for the Mean Green will be a lengthy break lasting until the Arturo Barrios Invitational Oct. 18 in College Station, Texas. Following that meet will be the start of postseason competition with the AAC Championships on Nov. 2 and the NCAA South Central Regional on Nov. 15.
Players Mentioned
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