The men’s and women’s cross country teams delivered strong performances at the Highlander Invitational in Riverside, with eight of the Leopards’ 18 runners setting personal records on the challenging Ag/Ops Course.
The men’s team secured a 10th place finish out of 20 competing teams, while the women’s team placed 18th out of 24.
Both teams faced tough competition from schools across NCAA divisions, NAIA programs and junior colleges, giving the Leopards valuable experience ahead of the postseason.
Leading the way for the women, sophomore Marissa Hehir clocked a time of 22:35, finishing 69th overall in a competitive field. Sophomore Lizbeth Garcia set a personal record of 23:18, a performance that now ranks ninth on La Verne’s all-time list.
Other standout performances came from junior Ryleigh LaRue, who improved her previous best by an impressive one minute and forty seconds, finishing at 23:53, and junior Madison Bravo, who posted a new personal best of 24:19, improving by 1:11.
On the men’s side, sophomore Fernando Cortez Jr. paced the team with a personal record of 25:33. Sophomore Finn McClure and junior Zyeir Shabete also set new personal records, finishing at 25:37 and 25:48, respectively.
This top 10 result marked the third time this season that the men’s team has earned a top 10 finish, underscoring their growing consistency.
Looking ahead, the Leopards will continue their season at the SCIAC Championships, hosted at Carbon Canyon Regional Park in Brea on Nov. 2.
—Jonas Holt
Jonas Holt is a senior journalism major with a concentration in print and online journalism. He is sports editor of the Campus Times, a staff writer for La Verne Magazine and staff photographer for both publications. He has previously been a staff writer for the Campus Times.
