No. 10 Arkansas Battles 64 Teams At Home
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Arkansas women’s cross country team will attempt to continue their season success as they host the 28th Annual Chile Pepper Festival on Saturday, Oct. 1 at Agri Park.
With the women’s race set to begin at 10:20 a.m. CT, the Razorbacks will face off against 64 teams, a record amount of collegiate entries for the event, as they pursue their fifth team title of the season.
Head coach Lance Harter’s squad moved up in the latest national polls, claiming the No. 10 spot while holding on to No. 1 in the South Central region.
Arkansas took on two competitions on Sept. 17, securing first place team finishes at both the Missouri Southern Stampede as well as the UC Riverside Invitational.
Much of the spotlight fell on Razorback underclassmen as sophomore Safee Belbina dominated the Southern Stampede placing first among D-I competitors while freshman Taylor Werner raced to the Riverside 5K title and SEC Freshman Runner of the Week honors for her efforts.
Senior leader Valerie Reina led Arkansas in the Riverside 6K race as the second overall finisher.
The Chile Pepper Festival will showcase the return of other notable leaders — Devin Clark and Regan Ward — who were staples in the Razorbacks’ top five last season.
“It’s always good to run in front of our home crowd,” Harter said. “We’re going to finally put our whole team together. During the last few weeks, we’ve held out a couple of individuals, some of our actual team leaders. With the large field, our athletes will have to simulate almost what you would see at an NCAA Championship. We’re going to have to get out fast, but under control.”
Among the 65 teams entered will be the top distance programs from the north: Boston College and Villanova. Additionally, the Razorbacks will see more regional competition from TCU, North Texas, UALR, Central Arkansas, Arkansas State and UL Lafayette.
2016 Cross Country Schedule
Thurs, Sept. 1 – Cowboy Duals (Stillwater, Okla.) | 1st of 6
Sat, Sept. 17 – Southern Stampede (Joplin, Mo.) | 1st of 2
Sat, Sept. 17 – Riverside Invitational (Riverside, Calif.) | 1st of 20
Sat, Oct. 1 – Chile Pepper Festival (Agri Park) 10:20 a.m.
Sat, Oct. 15 – Pre-Nationals (Terre Haute, Ind.) 10:00 a.m.
Fri, Oct. 28 – SEC Championship (Agri Park) 11:00 a.m.
Fri, Nov. 11 – NCAA South Central Regional (Agri Park) 10:00 a.m.
Sat, Nov. 19 – NCAA Championship (Terre Haute, Ind.) 10:00 a.m.
Bold denotes a home event.
For more information on Arkansas track and field including in-meet updates, follow @RazorbackTF on Twitter.