The Cougars men’s and women’s teams secured fifth place at the Conference USA Cross Country Championships on Saturday, led by Stephanie Aldea, Nate Pineda and David Smith, who all finished in the top 21 to lock up all-conference honors.
The men’s team racked up 122 points to earn fifth place, one position higher than their finish in the 2008 C-USA Championships.
‘It’s hard to be that close, but that far away (from fourth place),’ Turner said. ‘I really thought that was probably one of the best races our guys have ran all year.’
Pineda led UH in the men’s 8K race, finishing 19th with a time of 26:02. The sophomore made an 11-spot jump from last year’s 30th place at the C-USA Championships and improved upon his 2008 time of 27:00.
Although Pineda was hobbled by a foot injury throughout the week, Turner downplayed any effect it had in Saturday’s race.
Making his first appearance at the championships, freshman David Smith impressed. His time of 26:10 put him in 21st, good enough to join Pineda on the All-C-USA Third Team.
Sophomores Anthony Jordon and Andres Santaolalla placed 26th and 27th, respectively. Cole Bessner also performed well, finishing in 35th with a time of 26:50.
The women’s team racked up 138 points, matching its best finish since 2002, when the Cougars placed fourth.
Sophomore Stephanie Aldea earned 17th place in the women’s race, finishing the 5K course in 18:58. The top-20 finish secured a spot on the All-C-USA Third Team for Aldea, who took home C-USA’s Freshman of the Year title at the 2008 conference meet.
‘It’s really nice seeing red uniforms coming down the straightaway, and I thought that was kind of a surprise – to see them all together,’ Turner said on the women’s team.
The Cougars next stop is the NCAA South Central Regional in Waco on Nov. 14. The top performers in this meet will qualify for the NCAA Championships, which is scheduled for Nov. 23.
