PORTALES, N.M. – Homecoming weekend in Portales is finally here. This year, Greyhound Athletics is blessed to host five different events on Homecoming Day beginning with the Greyhound Invite. Please read the Five Mile Preview to learn more about the upcoming cross country race:
Mile One – NMHU Recap: Five different runners competed for Eastern New Mexico men's and women's cross country at the New Mexico Highlands XC Jam meet. A mid-day cloud coverage provided cooler temperatures to race.
Elizabeth Lujan-Towles (20:24.02) and
Sylvia Lagat (21:41.31) competed for the women's program, while
Bryan Hernandez (24:45.84),
Justin Sauceda (25:59.24), and
Ethan Woodrome (26:36.45) ran for the men's team. Both Hernandez and Lujan-Towles took sixth-place finishes for ENMU in the event.
Mile Two – Conference Recognition: For the first time since 2017 a member of the men's cross country program was recognized with a Lone Star Conference weekly runner of the week honor. San Elizario, Texas native
Bryan Hernandez earned freshman runner of the week after racing to the best 7k time at the NMHU XC Jam by a Greyhound. His sixth-place finish paced the team on the course ran at the Gene Torres Golf Course. Hernandez will be running his fourth collegiate race this weekend at the home meet Saturday morning.
Mile Three – Meet Outlook: Competing for the Greyhounds this weekend will be
Sanne Janssen,
Faith Jepchirchir,
Sylvia Lagat,
Elizabeth Lujan-Towles,
Valentina Rocabado Salazar,
Thomas Aerdts,
Emiliano Medina,
Ethan Woodrome,
Bryan Hernandez,
Justin Sauceda,
Jackson Gable, and
Brian Norton. Janssen, Jepchirchir, Rocabado Salazar, Aerdts, Gable, and Norton will be competing for the first time since the Mustang Derby (9/12). Medina will be racing for the first time in his collegiate career.
Mile Four – Competitors: The meet will feature several teams from across the region. The field includes Amarillo College, Midwestern State, Northern New Mexico, Oklahoma Panhandle State, University of the Southwest, and UT Permian Basin. ENMU has competed against MSU at two different meets this season and saw Northern New Mexico and Oklahoma Panhandle State at the meet in Las Vegas, N.M. Both LSC foes, UT Permian Basin and Midwestern State will have representatives in the women's race.
Mile Five – The Course: Eastern New Mexico's cross country course begins directly against West University Drive. The path takes runners on the perimeter of the field and around the various outdoor facilities (soccer field and track). The competitors will then cut back towards the middle of the field towards the north end of the soccer field before going directly north towards the Floyd highway. The racers will then circle around the field and head in the direction of North Avenue Q and pace themselves southbound. After completing a full circle the loops will be slightly different based on the race distance (6k or 8k). The finish will be similar to the course in 2023 as student-athletes will make a sprint inside the old soccer field. Results will be available
online. The course maps can be seen below:
