WACO, Texas — Jimmy Wiggins earned all-region honors Saturday as the LSU men’s and women’s cross country teams concluded their seasons with identical 11th-place finishes at the NCAA South Central Regional Championships.
“I’m very pleased with how we ran today,” said LSU cross country coach Mark Elliott. “We ran much better then we did at the SEC Championships and it was a good way for us to finish the season. Now we just have to wait and see if Jimmy will get into of the NCAA Championships.”
By virtue of his 16th-place finish, Wiggins has the opportunity to receive an individual at-large bid to the national meet to be held in Waterloo, Iowa, on Nov. 24. The NCAA will announce its decisions by Tuesday.
In the team competition, Arkansas and Texas A&M advanced to the NCAA Championships on the men’s side, as the Razorbacks won their 15th consecutive regional title (54 points) and the Aggies finished second with 73 points.
On the women’s side, Texas won its first regional title since 1988 (66 points), while host-Baylor earned runner-up honors (68 points) as both teams earned trips to the NCAA Championships.
The Tigers, who entered the race ranked 10th in the region, finished the day in 11th with 284 points, while the unranked Lady Tigers turned in a solid performance to tally 288 points and secure their own 11th-place finish.
Individually, Texas’ Paul Morrison captured the men’s title, finishing the 10K race in 29:43. Wiggins was the Tigers’ top finisher for the sixth time this season, placing 16th overall with a time of 31:19. He was followed by Roland LeBlanc (33:13), Andrew Huston (33:34), Jarett Roche’ (34:07) and Nick Accardo (34:20) who all finished in scoring position for LSU.
In the women’s race, TCU’s Nary Kinyanjui won individual gold, topping the field with a time of 20:44. Junior Katie Denton paced the Lady Tiger squad for the seventh straight week, clocking a season-best 6K time of 22:40 to place 39th overall. She was followed by Michelle Hymel (23:27), Jannifer Radecker (23:43), Megan Kliebert (23:52) and Erin Vandivort (24:17) who all contributed to the Lady Tigers’ team score.
NCAA SOUTH CENTRAL REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
TEAM RESULTS
MEN
1, Arkansas, 54. 2, Texas A&M, 73. 3, Stephen F. Austin, 77. 4, Texas, 85. 5, Sam Houston State, 163. 6, Rice, 180. 7, Baylor, 213. 8, Texas-Pan American, 271. 8, Houston, 271, 10, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 275. 11, LSU, 284. 12, Arkansas-Little Rock, 289. 13, McNeese State, 310. 14, UL-Monroe, 347. 15, TCU, 373. 16, UL-Lafayette, 407.
WOMEN
1, Texas, 66. 2, Baylor, 68. 3, Arkansas, 70. 4, TCU, 86. 5, Texas A&M, 118. 6, Rice, 148. 7, Stephen F. Austin, 230. 8, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 246. 9, UT-Arlington, 264. 10, Lamar, 280. 11, LSU, 288. 12, North Texas, 321. 13, UT-Pan American, 369. 14, Sam Houston State, 397. 15, UL-Lafayette, 424. 16, Arkansas State, 455. 17, New Orleans, 459.
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS (Winner plus all LSU finishers)
MEN
1, Paul Morrison, Texas, 29:43. 16, Jimmy Wiggins, 31:19 60, Roland LeBlanc, 33:13. 68, Andrew Huston, 33:34. 82, Jarett Roche’, 34:07. 86, Nick Accardo, 34:20. 98, James Presley, 34:49. Ben Shumaker, 35:53.
WOMEN
1, Nary Kinyanjui, TCU, 20:44. 39, Katie Denton, 22:40. 59, Michelle Hymel, 23:27. 69, Jennifer Radecker, 23:43. 75, Megan Kliebert, 23:52. 87, Erin Vandivort, 24:17. 97, Sarah Colosimo, 24:35. 100, Katrina Flanders, 24:49.