FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Madison Thurston continued her strong season Saturday as University of Arkansas – Fort Smith Cross Country took on the Chile Pepper Festival.
Thurston finished 24th to lead the Lions as the top 25 finishers in each race received a medal. Thurston finished in 19:22.3, just two second off her personal best time.
Annabella Tedder and Cecilia Perez each ran personal best times as Tedder finished 33rd with a time of 19:36.5 and Perez finished 37th in 19:42.4.
Rachel Malik and Hailey Malik finished back-to-back in 52nd and 53rd, respectively, to round out the top five. Rachel finished in 20:03.4 and Hailey in 20:03.5.
Zoe Nesbitt and Brookelyn Davis completed the scoring for the Lions in 20:33.8 and 20:58.7, respectively.
As a team, the Lions finished fifth in the Prairie Fire Pepper 5k with 175 points.
Angel Cordero paced the men for the first time this season, placing 55th in 27:44.0 in the Prairie Fire Pepper 8k. Conner Valentine followed close behind in 61st in 27:51.4 while Evan Smith was 74th in 28:17.8.
Adan Castillo crossed the line in 81st in 28:28.6 with Troy Ferguson in 102nd in 28:58.5. Closing out the scoring were Joaquin Alva in 29:04.8 and Isaac Teague in 29:12.4.
UAFS finished 11th as a team with 302 points.
Next up for the Lions is the Brian T. Simpson Invitational at Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia, Missouri.
