HOBBS, N.M. – The Wayland Baptist University men's and women's cross country teams competed at the Thunderbird Open on Friday, October 16, at Harry McAdams Park in Hobbs, New Mexico. The Pioneers were led by Ryder Robison in the men's 8K race and Aliyah Vasquez in the women's 5K race.
The Wayland Baptist men's cross country team finished fifth out of seven scoring teams, totaling 144 points in the 8K race. Six Pioneers competed in the event, which featured 66 finishers.
Ryder Robison led the Pioneers with an 11th-place finish, crossing the line in 26:53.00. Israel Esparza followed with a strong performance of his own, placing 18th overall with a time of 27:06.60. The duo gave Wayland two runners inside the top 20.
Alex Naranjo was the next Pioneer to finish, placing 48th with a time of 29:50.80. Brandon Marines followed closely behind in 50th place, clocking a time of 30:09.60.
Diego Castaneda rounded out Wayland's five scoring runners with a 55th-place finish in 30:44.10, while Jorge Rangel completed the Pioneer lineup in 62nd place with a time of 32:11.60.
As a team, Wayland recorded a combined time of 2:24:44.11, averaging 28:56.82 across its five scoring runners.
New Mexico Junior College claimed the men's team title with 17 points, followed by South Plains College with 58 and Amarillo College with 73. New Mexico Junior College's Ahmed Faris won the individual title with a time of 24:21.60.
On the women's side, three Pioneers competed in the 5K race, which featured 46 finishers.
Aliyah Vasquez led Wayland with a 35th-place finish, completing the course in 23:50.50.
Sofia Melendez was the second Pioneer across the finish line, placing 38th overall with a time of 24:38.00. Brianna Moreno rounded out the Wayland runners with a 40th-place finish, clocking a time of 24:57.10.
The three Pioneers finished within 1:06.60 of one another, showing a close grouping among Wayland's women's runners.
Wayland did not record an official team score, as the Pioneers competed with three runners and five are required to qualify for team scoring.
El Paso Community College captured the women's team championship with 32 points, followed by Amarillo College with 56 and Angelo State with 62. El Paso Community College's Nhamoinesu Mabvuka claimed the individual title with a time of 18:41.40.
Wayland Baptist Individual Results
Men's 8K – 5th of 7 Teams (144 Points)
Women's 5K – No Team Score
