ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The LSU cross country teams competed well Saturday in their first big meet of the young season. The men’s squad was fifth with 159 points and the women were seventh with 212 points at the University of New Mexico’s Lobo Invitational.
Two of LSU’s veteran runners, juniors Katie Denton and Jimmy Wiggins, led their respective teams in their first races of the season. Wiggins was 13th out of 120 runners, clocking a time of 25:25 in the 8K race. Denton led the Lady Tigers in 28th place registering a time of 24:15 in the 6K.
The rest of the Tigers’ top five also competed for the first time this year.
Those five finished within thirty seconds of one another. Jarett Roche was the second Tiger to cross the finish line, finishing 28th with a time of 26:42. Ben Shumaker, Roland LeBlanc and Matt Carroll were 35th, 41st and 42nd, respectively.
Michelle Hymel was second for the Lady Tigers finishing 40th (25:36). She was followed by teammate Jennifer Radecker in 43rd (25:50).
LSU will travel to Athens, Ga. next week to compete in the University of Georgia’s Bulldog Stampede.
Lobo Invitational Team Results
MEN
1. Colorado State 35
2. Western State 49
3. UTEP 101
4. New Mexico 129
5. LSU 159
6. Texas Tech 185
7. Fort Lewis 197
8. UT-Pan American 230
9. SIPI 263
10. NMHU 277
11. Dine 289
12. EPCC 310
13. ENMU 320
14. New Mexico State 393
WOMEN
1. Colorado State 36
2. Texas Tech 62
3. UTEP 70
4. Western State 79
5. New Mexico 161
6. NMHU 193
7. LSU 212
8. Fort Lewis 224
9. UT-Pan American 262
10. ENMU 289
11. NMJC 305
12. SIPI 333
13. EPCC 389
14. Dine 440
Individual Results (Champion plus all LSU finishers)
MEN
1, Will Banks, WSU, 24:45. 13, Jimmy Wiggins, 25:25. 28, Jarett Roche, 26:42. 35, Ben Shumaker, 27:00. 41, Roland LeBlanc, 27:05. 42, Matt Carroll, 27:10. 43, Andrew Huston, 27:11. 48, Jace Gohres, 27:19.
WOMEN
1, Adriana Pirtea, UTEP, 22:10. 28, Katie Denton, 24:15. 40, Michelle Hymel, 25:36. 43, Jennifer Radecker. 25:50. 49, Katrina Flanders, 26:18. 52, Megan Kliebert, 26:38. 54, Sarah Bailey, 26:46. 59, Katherine Accardo, 27:10.