Sept. 26, 2006

The University of Texas-Pan American men's and women's cross country teams will head to Stillwater, OK, to compete in their first out-of-state meet of the season in the Cowboy Jamboree hosted by Oklahoma State University on Saturday (Sept. 30).

The Broncs are coming off an eighth-place finish in which newcomer Omar Doria (Edinburg, TX/Edinburg North H.S.) crossed the finish line in 17th place to lead all Bronc runners. Doria and high school teammate Wally Gonzalez (Edinburg, TX/Edinburg H.S.) look to build on successful freshmen campaigns when they head to Oklahoma to compete in the 8,000-meter race.

"We've done pretty well as a group, but we haven't put our best team out there in any meet yet. This is going to be one when we're putting out top-seven out there and hopefully we can come away with a top-four or top-five finish," said head men's and women's track and field/cross country coach Ricky Vaughn.

The veteran Lady Bronc team, headed by senior Karla Hernandez (Edinburg, TX/Edinburg H.S.), ran well as a pack in their last meet, but will look to move the pack up in hopes of a better overall team performance. The combination of veteran leadership and young talent should be a recipe for success for the Lady Broncs in Stillwater. Hernandez is coming off a Lady Bronc-best 35th place finish in College Station, while freshman Carolina Izaguirre (Brownsville, TX/Hanna H.S.) placed 38th in the same competition.

"Once again, this is going to be the first time we're putting all of our top women together in the same race. They're looking good and I think we can have a good showing," said Vaughn.

In their second year competing in the Cowboy Jamboree, Vaughn expects his team to be tested as they go against some of the top teams in NCAA cross country.

"It's a really high-level cross country meet, and this is going to be our first true test. We definitely want to go in there and have our best showing because this is a meet that can reflect on a team getting into the NCAA Championships," said Vaughn.

Both men's and women's teams will be facing top-level competition as Oklahoma State and Arkansas are ranked in the top-ten nationally in both divisions. The field will also include Texas A&M, Kansas, Kansas State and other Big 12 teams.

"Our first two meets were low-key and let us see where we were at to get people ready. This is where our season starts so they're going to have to be ready to go and ready to perform well," added Vaughn.

The Cowboy Jamboree will begin on Saturday (Sept. 30) in Stillwater, OK, and will begin with the women's division at 9 a.m. followed by the men's.

UTPA Sports Information