Program
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The 2015 American Athletic Conference Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Championships will take place Saturday, Oct. 31, at Lake Kristi in Grimesland, N.C., located eight miles from the campus of host East Carolina University.
The men’s 8K race will take place at 10 a.m. ET/ 9 a.m. CT, followed by the women’s 6K race at 10:50 a.m. ET/ 9:50 a.m. CT. The awards ceremony will begin at approximately 11:40 a.m./10:40 a.m. CT, following the completion of the women’s race. The men’s and women’s races will be streamed live on the
American Digital Network.
The men’s championship meet will feature three teams ranked in the U.S. Track and Field Cross Country Coaches Association National and Regional rankings.
Tulsa, the defending American Athletic Conference champion, enters the title meet ranked No. 13 in the national coaches poll. Regionally, the Golden Hurricane is ranked No. 2 in the Midwest Region. Tulsa is led by The American’s 2014 men’s individual champion, Marc Scott. The senior is coming off a first-place finish in the Wisconsin Adidas Invitational 8K race on Oct. 16. Scott was named USTFCCCA Division I Men’s Athlete of the Week as he led Tulsa to an eighth-place finish in Madison, Wis. The Golden Hurricane also returns sophomores Elijah Silva and Adam Roderique, who placed ninth and 14th last season in the conference title meet.
Houston comes into the conference championship as the No. 8 team in the South Central Region. Junior Brian Barraza has been the Cougars’ top runner all season, most recently finishing 25th in the Pre-Nationals meet in Louisville, Ky. The junior has earned a pair of individual wins in the 2015 season; placing first in the Texas A&M Invitational and the Rice Invitational. Accompanying Barraza in the championship meet will be senior James Broussard and sophomore Blake Contreras, both of whom finished in the top 15 last season.
Temple is ranked No. 12 in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Senior Alex Izewski has been leading the Owls in 2015, producing top-20 finishes in the Big 5 Invitational, Main Line Invite, Paul Short Run and Princeton Invitational. Also competing for Temple is senior Matt Kacyon, who finished in eighth place in last year’s conference championship.
The men’s meet will also feature Toby Loveridge of Cincinnati, Michael McGonnigle of UConn, Jorge Montes of East Carolina, Corentin Louis of Memphis, Michael Babinec of USF and Moses Aloiloi of Tulane. In last year’s conference meet, Aloiloi finished No. 7, Montes was No. 10 and McGonnigle at No. 13. Loveridge is coming off a top-20 finish at the Pre-Nationals meet for the Bearcats. Louis paced the Tigers at the Crimson Classic on Oct. 16. Babinec has been leading the Bulls all season and most recently placed second at the USF Invitational to lead his squad to a third place finish.
In the women’s meet, three teams enter The American Championship regionally ranked by the USTFCCCA.
SMU holds the highest regional ranking of an American Athletic Conference women’s squad, ranking No. 3 in the South Central Region. Seniors Shanoah Souza and Karoline Skatteboe have been powering the Mustangs all season. Souza, who placed third in last season’s conference meet, is coming off an 85th-place finish in a competitive field at the Wisconsin Adidas Invitational. Skatteboe claimed the Gerald Richey Invitational on Sept. 19. Junior Holly Archer, a top-15 finisher in last season’s conference meet, will be running alongside Souza and Skatteboe.
Tulsa, the defending American Athletic Conference women’s champions, come into the title meet at No. 6 in the Midwest Region. Senior Rachel Baptista is coming off a 21st-place performance at the Wisconsin Adidas Invitational. The senior led the Golden Hurricane to a 28th-place finish among a field of nationally ranked teams. Tulsa will be returning four Top 15 finishers from last year’s conference championship - junior Clara Langley, sophomore Nicole Lee, junior Olivia Lopez and junior Stacie Taylor.
UConn enter the championship meet with a No. 11 ranking in the Northeast Region. The defending American Athletic Conference women’s individual champion, Emily Durgin, is coming off a 46th-place finish at the Pre-Nationals meet in Louisville, Ky. Senior Lauren Williamson will be looking to build off her 14th-place finish in last season’s title meet.
Other notable runners in the women’s meet are Anne-Marie Bailey and Holley Wooley of UCF, Hannah Christ of Cincinnati, Caroline Reiser of East Carolina, Madison Brown of Houston, Kristen Adams of Memphis, Catherine Blaney of USF, Blanca Fernandez of Temple and Emma Newton of Tulane. Bailey and Adams finished third and 13th in the 2014 American Athletic Conference Championship. Wooley, who has been leading the Knights this season, won the FL Runners Invite on Oct. 21. Christ paced the Bearcats in the All-Ohio Championships and the VT Alumni Meet this season. Reiser has been the top runner for the Pirates in four meets in 2015. Brown highlighted the Cougars with an individual win at the HBU Opener. Blaney defeated the field at the FSU Invitational to lead the Bulls to a third-place finish on Oct. 2. Fernandez has recorded individual victories in the Princeton Invitational, Paul Short Run, Main Line Invite and the Big 5 Invitational to lead the Owls. Newton powered the Green Wave to a 24th-place finish in the Black Race at Pre-Nationals.
For the latest 2015 American Athletic Conference Cross Country Championship information visit
Championship Central and follow
@AmericanXCTrack on Twitter.