Texas Border Business
BROWNSVILLE, Texas – The Texas Southmost College men’s and women’s cross country teams are in Huntsville, Alabama, preparing to compete against some of the best National Junior College Athletic Association programs at the NJCAA Division II National Championships on Nov. 14 at John Hunt Cross Country Park.
TSC Women Emerge as National Podium Contenders
The TSC women are coming off a strong performance at the Region 14 Championships, where freshman Emily Ortiz captured the individual title and sophomore Angela Soto finished runner-up, helping the Scorpions secure a second-place team finish.
In the inaugural season of the program last year, the Scorpion women placed 35th at the national meet. This season, expectations are much higher.
The women enter the national championships ranked No. 6 in the latest NJCAA Division II Women’s Cross Country Coaches’ Poll. TSC Cross Country Head Coach Basilio Mendoza believes his women’s team has a legitimate opportunity to contend for a podium finish.
“If we can get two more of our girls to break the 20-minute mark along with Emily and Angela, I think we could finish in the top three nationally,” Mendoza said. “They will really have to dig in.”
The Scorpions have steadily climbed throughout the season, going from unranked in the preseason poll to one of the nation’s top teams with a realistic chance at earning a top-three finish.
Scorpion Men Look to Finish Strong
Like the women’s team, the TSC men also earned a second-place finish at the Region 14 Championships and enter the national meet ranked No.19 in the country.
Sophomore Ubaldo Flores will lead the Scorpions after finishing as TSC’s top runner at the regional meet.
The men will look to improve on last year’s 15th-place finish at the national championships and close out the season on a high note.
