University of Houston
Sam Houston Invitational
Cross Country Women Win Sam Houston Invitational
10/19/2008 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Oct. 19, 2008
HUNSTVILLE, Texas--The University of Houston women's cross-country team captured their fourth first-place win of the season, and fifth-consecutive top five finish at the Sam Houston Invitational on Saturday. Five Cougars placed in the top eight.
For the women's 4K race, freshman Starla Garcia won the race with a time of 14:23.80. Freshman Stephanie Aldea got her fifth consecutive top-three finish, with her second place victory with a time of 14:24.20.
Freshman Megan Munoz took fifth with a time of 14:30.30, while junior Erica Hannemann finished just seconds behind in sixth with a time of 14:34.30.
Freshman Brandi Witte took the eighth place spot with a time of 14:38.20. Overall, the women finished first in the race with 18 points.
"The women competed hard from the gun with the goal of running together as a team. Through two miles they were all in the top five places in a tight pack. Stephanie (Aldea) stayed back and ran with the group helping provide encouragement to her teammates. She's a true team player. Starla (Garcia) was able to get the victory this week. She's been our No. 2 girl each week," head coach Ryan Turner said. "I firmly believe that to build a winning attitude you have to first experience what its like to win. Our women right now have that winning swagger and it's coming together at the right time of the season."
The men finished sixth in the 6.2K race. Freshman Nate Pineda took 15th place with a time of 19:55.10. Right behind him in the 18th spot was freshman Anthony Jordan who finished with a time of 20:04.30.
Freshman Jesse Rodriguez finished in the 23rd place with a time of 20:13.90.
"Our plan this week was to run better as a team, I asked Nate (Pineda) to hold back a little to help our two through seven men. By the time I cut Nate (Pineda) loose he was to far back to catch back up. That was a coaching mistake on my part. We are a much better team then how we raced today and I have complete faith that at the Conference USA meet, we will have our best race of the season." Turner said.
Next Up
The Cougars will travel to Memphis, Tennessee on Nov. 1 to compete in the C-USA Championships. Check www.UHCougars.com for complete recap following the event.
Players Mentioned
