TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Lorena Rangel-Batres led a commanding 1-2-3 finish for the LSU women’s team at the FSU Invitational on Friday, boosting them to a decisive win over 35 teams, including ranked Florida squads.
Meanwhile, the men’s team encountered challenges, finishing seventh out of 31, as they navigated a roster laden with inexperienced freshmen. Men’s Results || Women’s Results
Read more: Florida Gators Men Triumph, Women Secure Second at FSU Cross Country Invitational
Lorena Rangel-Batres claimed first place in her inaugural meet of the season, clocking a new 5k personal-best time of 17:13.0.
Teammates Michaela Rose and Ella Chesnut rounded out the top three, also notching personal records with times of 17:20.5 and 17:21.5, respectively. The triumph propelled LSU to a first-place finish with a mere 27 points, well ahead of No. 8 ranked Florida, which scored 42 points.
Cross country coach Houston Franks lauded the women’s performance, stating, “We were really patient and put ourselves in a good position to let the race develop. When it was time to push for home, I thought we did a really good job.”
The LSU women’s team’s strength was evident in the depth of their roster. Tana Monk, fresh off her LSU Invitational win, placed sixth with a time of 17:40.5.
Further bolstering the team’s performance were Callie Hardy and Adele Broussard, who finished 15th and 19th, respectively.
On the men’s side, LSU grappled with inexperience, taking seventh place with a score of 215 points. Will Dart led the men’s contingent, coming in 34th with a time of 25:37.5, followed by sophomore Tyler Stevens at 49th with a time of 25:47.6.
LSU will next compete at the Arturo Barrios Invitational in Bryan-College Station, Texas, on Friday, October 13. The men are scheduled to kick off at 8:30 a.m. CT, followed by the women at 9:15 a.m. CT.
Franks noted room for improvement on the men’s side, saying, “We didn’t execute the race plan very well on the men’s side, and we have a lot of freshmen that ran their first 8k today.
“There’s not a lot of experience on the team, but we have to execute better than we did today.”
By Braydin Sik of LSU and Susan Moore (WT)
