BLINN CROSS COUNTRY AT HALF MARATHON CHAMPIONSHIP

Story by Joe Alberico, Blinn College Sports Information

The Blinn College men’s and women’s cross country teams competed at the NJCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Half Marathon Championships on Tuesday in Fort Dodge, Iowa.

Much like they did during the cross country national meet on Saturday, the Buccaneer men and women improved on their performances from the 2024 half marathon.

In the 13.1-mile race, Blinn men finished 10th among 32 teams, a nice step up from its 14th-place performance last season.

The Blinn women also trekked 13.1 miles and placed 13th in a 22-team competition.

“Our performances the past few days give me confidence that we are developing athletes and improving the competitiveness of our team in relation to the best programs in the NJCAA,” Blinn head coach Jesse Parker said. “Last year we took a conservative approach to this event since many did not have any experience with a half-marathon. We went out slower and tried to progress the pace throughout the race. This year, we tried to be a little more traditional in our approach with even splits. Both teams did a great job with this.”

On the men’s side, freshman Brandon Lopez paced the Bucs with a time of 1 hour, 12 minutes, and 40.1 seconds and finished 43rd overall.

Freshman Matthew Binkley placed 44th in 1:12:53.5; freshman Ryan Fernandez finished 50th in 1:13:15.9; sophomore Eric Lagat was 65th in 1:14:42.4; freshman Aidan Hernandez finished in 1:15:37.1 for 75th; freshman Nolan Schreiber took 96th in 1:17:39.7; freshman Gage Horejsi was 118th in 1:19:36.7; freshman Cole Janecek placed 137th in 1:21:09.2; and sophomore Joseph Villegas crossed the finish line in 1:23:13.1 for 153rd place.

Freshman Kaitlin Wilson produced the Blinn women’s best finish with a time of 1:33:02.5, good for 50th place. 

Freshman Rosario Botello was just behind Wilson with a 52nd-place showing in 1:33:17.2. Sophomore Sophie Pyle took 60th in 1:34:58.3; sophomore Mia Guillen claimed 62nd in 1:35:18.8; freshman Chloe Ross was 68th in 1:36:25.8; sophomore Clare White crossed the finish line in 1:38:44.7; and sophomore Juliana Jeansonne was 86th in 1:41:15.9.

Blinn’s fall season is over, but the Bucs will compete in track and field competitions as individual athletes in the spring.