FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.– The UT Arlington men's and women's cross country teams concluded NCAA South Central Regional Championships on Friday, Nov. 14 behind a stellar finish from freshman Dorcas Jepkosgei.
 
In her first regional appearance, Jepkosgei paced the Mavericks with a top 10 finish in the women's 6k, capturing 9th place with a blistering time of 20:13.2. The newcomer has competed among the top runners throughout the country all season with multiple top finishes under her freshman belt.
 
Coming into Friday's regional, Jepkosgei was ranked 71st in the country and fifth in the South Central Region according to the USTFCCCA as the frosh was among three freshmen who capped a top spot in the championships.
 
As a team, the women completed the 6k with a 10th place finish, accumulating 294 points. The Mavericks were ranked 11th in the latest regional rankings as the squad outran local rivals TCU and Baylor as the Horned Frogs came away with 353 points and the Bears with 359.
 
Junior Matro Jepkemboi turned in a time of 20:42.9 in the women's 6k, concluding her season with an 18th place finish. The veteran had multiple top performances throughout the year, coming away with four top 10 finishes including runner up at the Texas A&M Invitational back in September. There, she logged a 17:00.6 in the women's 5k.
 
After Friday's performance, Jepkemboi has made three regional appearances in her career following third place in 2023 and 18th in 2024. The Kenyan native's third place finish two seasons ago went on to be the best individual finish in UTA program history which earned her a ticket to the NCAA Cross Country Championships.
 
Rounding out the women's top five performers were Linn Adolfsson (79th, 22:31.1), Lauren Baur (93rd, 22:47.1) and Abigail Perez (95th, 22:48.9).
 
Sophomore Toby Eaton guided the men to a 10th place finish as the transfer posted a top 30 time of 30:57.3 in the 10k. Coming in behind Eaton was freshman Angel Sanchez who appeared in his first regional, finishing with a time of 32:04.0.
 
Other Mavericks who also made their postseason debut were Mateo Doherty and Kebede Kerlin who logged times of 32:05.4 and 32:09.9. Rounding out the men's top five performers was senior Brian Guevara as the Grapevine native snagged a time of 33:15.0.
 
Per the NCAA, the first four regional finishers not from an automatic qualifying or at-large team also secure an auto-bid to the championships. The at-large teams will be decided following the selection show at 5 p.m. ET/4 p.m. CT on Saturday, Nov. 15. The top four finishers from non-auto qualifying teams in each region can be found here.
 
Jepkosgei's 9th place finish and potential qualification will be determined following the selection show.
 
SEASON IN REVIEW:
Men's
Sept. 5: Gerald Richey Invitational | 1st
Sept. 13: Texas A&M Invitational | 5th
Oct. 4: Chile Pepper Festival | 9th
Oct. 17: Arturo Barrios Invitational | 16th
Oct. 31: WAC Championships | 4th
Nov. 14: NCAA South Central Regional | 10th
 
Women's
Sept. 5: Gerald Richey Invitational | 3rd
Sept. 13: Texas A&M Invitational | 5th
Oct. 4: Chile Pepper Festival | 6th
Oct. 17: Arturo Barrios Invitational | 15th
Oct. 31: WAC Championships | 3rd
Nov. 14: NCAA South Central Regional | 10th
 
FOLLOW ALONG
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