KINGSVILLE, Texas – The Texas A&M – Kingsville men's and women's cross country teams are set to kick off the 2023 campaign this Saturday in Nacogdoches, Texas at the Lumberjack Invitational hosted by Stephen F. Austin.
The men will start the season off at 7:30 a.m. while the women get underway at 8:15 a.m. The Javelinas will be joined by Stephen F. Austin, Sam Houston State, and UT Tyler for both races taking place at Pecan Acres Park.
The new season for the men's team will be highlighted by a wave of fresh faces with seven freshmen joining the squad. The new recruits will be following the footsteps of returning junior, and team leader Cody Fountain, who led the way for the Javelinas through the 2022 season. Fountain ran a personal best 6K time of 20:02.5 last season during the UIW Twilight meet to secure a 41st-place finish, along with grabbing a 6th-place finish in the 8K at the ASU Blue and Gold Classic with a time of 26:43.9.
Fountain will not be the only returner in the young squad. He will be joined by the sophomore trio of Daniel Perez, Nicolas Torres, and Austin Venable. All three will be gearing up for their second year of competition, having made their collegiate debuts last season.
The women's team will be led by the duo of Odette Fernandez and Fae Gonzalez. Fernandez set two personal bests in 2022 with a 15:29.8 in the 4K at the UIW Twilight and a 18:39.4 in the 3 Mile at the Lumberjack Invitational, earning 20th and 22nd-place respectively. Gonzalez managed three personal bests of her own last year in the 4K, 5K, and 3 Mile. She also secured a 9th-place finish in the 6K at the ASU Blue & Gold Classic with a 25:12.2, just eight seconds short of setting a personal best for that distance as well.
The women's squad bolsters their roster as well with junior transfers Janeth Chacon and Maya Espinosa. Chacon joins the Javelinas from McMurry, where she helped the War Hawks to a team ASC championship in 2021 with a 2nd-place finish at the ASC Championships alongside two other 2nd-place finishes that year. Espinosa comes to Kingsville for Nova Southeastern, where she finished 27th at the NCAA Division II South Region Championships with a time of 22:29.7.
Looking to take a step forward this year as well are returning sophomore Ivanova Yanes and senior Destinee Longoria.
