AUSTIN, Texas — St. Edward's men's cross country has spent the fall developing young runners and helping experienced ones regain their stride. At the Lone Star Conference Championships, the Hilltoppers hope to bring more of those pieces together.
St. Edward's heads to LCU Cross Country Course in Lubbock, Texas, for Saturday's conference meet, with the men's 8K scheduled for 9 a.m. Coverage will be available on FloCollege.
The Hilltoppers are hopeful junior ARLO GONZALES can make his season debut and graduate student BEN BAYLY can return to the lineup. Their availability would bolster a group coming off HOGAN HEIKKINEN's strongest performance of the season, potentially giving St. Edward's a more experienced presence at the front of its pack.
Gonzales earned All-LSC honors with a ninth-place finish last year, leading St. Edward's in each of its final four meets and earning the conference's Academic Runner of the Year award. He entered this fall with an 8K personal best of 25:11.7 and a history of delivering his best efforts during the postseason.
Bayly demonstrated his potential at the Texas A&M Invitational in September, running 25:23.9 to finish 28th overall and first among NCAA Division II competitors. It was his first cross country race as a Hilltopper after injuries interrupted his previous year, though he established the program's indoor 5,000-meter record of 14:49.40 during track season.
Neither runner competed at the DBU Old Glory Gallop, where Heikkinen gave St. Edward's an encouraging performance heading into the postseason. He completed the 8K in 24:38.6 to finish 46th overall, leading the Hilltoppers to 22nd place in the 43-team field.
Heikkinen's progression has been one of the clearest signs of the team's development. After running 27:16.7 at Texas A&M in his own return to cross country competition, he improved to 26:15.3 at Chile Pepper before his breakthrough in Fort Worth. Different courses offer different challenges, but his latest performance gives the Hilltoppers another proven option near the front as they prepare for the conference field.
Sophomore JAVI RAMIREZ has provided consistency through the changing lineup. He followed Heikkinen at Old Glory in 25:02.7, with PARKER STEVENS next in 25:37.8. Freshmen ANTHONY GONZALEZ and JOE IBARRA completed the scoring five in 25:56.5 and 26:06.9, respectively, while CALEB KYBURZ finished just behind Ibarra in 26:07.5.
That group's continued progress matters regardless of who joins it Saturday. The potential addition of Gonzales and Bayly would strengthen the lineup, while the runners who have carried the scoring responsibilities throughout the fall will determine how far that strength extends.
Freshman BEN MACIAS has already shown his ability to lead, pacing St. Edward's at both Floyd Farms and Chile Pepper. In Fayetteville, Ramirez and Heikkinen followed closely behind him, giving the Hilltoppers a connected group to build around.
The conference competition leaves little room for separation within the scoring lineup. At Old Glory, St. Edward's finished behind Western New Mexico, UT Dallas, and Texas A&M-Kingsville, but ahead of Lubbock Christian and Eastern New Mexico. West Texas A&M won the meet with 27 points, placing five runners among the first nine scoring finishers. DBU, Texas A&M International, Oklahoma Christian, UT Tyler, and Cameron also finished ahead of the Hilltoppers.
Picked eighth in the preseason poll after finishing eighth last year, St. Edward's enters Saturday with an opportunity to turn individual improvement into a stronger collective result. Heikkinen's resurgence, Ramirez's consistency, and the freshmen's growing experience give the Hilltoppers a foundation. The possible return of Gonzales and Bayly could add another dimension.
The same course will host the NCAA Division II South Central Regional on Nov. 21. First, the Hilltoppers will look to put their most complete race together at the meet they have been building toward all season.
