Wednesday, September 1
Bryan-College Station
6:45 PM
Texas A&M
vs
Aggie Opener
Eric Casarez
Photo by: Craig Bisacre/Texas A&M Athletics
Texas A&M Cross Country Sweeps Aggie Opener
Sep 01, 2021 | Cross Country
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Aggies Eric Casarez and Gemma Goddard claimed individual titles, while Texas A&M swept the men's and women's team titles Wednesday night at the Aggie Opener at the Dale Watts Cross Country Course.
"I thought Eric [Casarez] looked good and Gemma [Goddard] looked real good in her first collegiate race," said head coach Pat Henry. "You could see a group out there that was trying to run as a team and trying to get some things done together. It's good to get out there early and see some things about yourself as a team, that's what this was about today."
After an hour lightning delay, the gun sounded as the women kicked off the 2021 season. A&M finished 1-3-5-6-9 to total 24 points, defeating runner-up SMU by 25 points. Goddard out leaned Steffi Jones of SMU at the finish line to claim the individual title by .2 seconds, she completed the 4.1k course at 14:26.8. The true freshman jumped eight positions from the halfway mark to earn her first collegiate victory.
Abbey Santoro placed third at 14:27.8, followed by Maddie Livingston in fifth at 14:31.8. Julia Black crossed the finish line sixth (14:33.1), while Grace Plain placed ninth (14:48.0) to round out the top five Aggie finishers.
In the men's race, Casarez showcased complete dominance defeating the field by 24 seconds. The speedster ran the first 2k in 5:53.9, before stopping the clock at 15:14.5. The junior completed the 5k course without ever giving up the leading position.
Joseph Benn joined Casarez with a top five finish, the freshman crossed the finish line at 15:44.2 to place fourth. Fellow Aggies Victor Zuniga (15:54.1), Gavin Hoffpauir (15:56.7) and Jonathan Chung (16:01.9) each recorded top 10 finishes to help the Aggies claim the team title by 54 points.
Next Up
Texas A&M takes a three week break of competition before hosting the Texas A&M Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 25.
Texas A&M Quotes
Distance Coach Wendel McRaven
on the hour long delay:
"It just created extra anxiety. I'm functioning as a coach but we are also hosting the meet, so I'm concerned about us getting the meet in and being a good host. It forced us to start the races so close together, it makes it harder to coach and to take in what exactly happened. It was a lot easier because it was at home, the athletes are comfortable here and I'm not worried about them not knowing the course."
on the women's group:
"The women executed exactly what we talked about. We always use this first meet as a rust buster, we try to control the start of the race because we've just been back on campus less than two weeks. We're using this as a chance to see where we are at, so I really wanted to make sure they controlled the first half of the race. It's a good looking group. They're ahead of where we were this point last year, which is important and I'm pleased with that. I'm excited to see the freshman step up and be a significant part of the group and I'm very pleased with Gemma [Goddard] winning the race."
on the men's group:
"Eric [Casarez] looked really good. He didn't execute exactly what we were talking about before the race, but he looked really good and looked like he had several more gears to go. The rest of the guys built through it and were solid. I'm really pleased with Joseph [Benn], he's a grinder and every year he gets a little bit better."
Junior Eric Casarez
on the season opener:
"I felt pretty confident. It's only the season opener so I didn't want to strain my body too much. I tried to let Coach McRaven know how I felt because I know he thinks I might've been getting a little too excited. I backed off a little bit at 1.5k just because there was a lot of racing ahead. This meet is just a rehearsal, like Coach Henry always says. I just wanted to get the feet moving and get back on the home course."
on 2020 season vs 2021 season expectations:
"I'm back. I wanted to let everyone know that last season was not me. It was an up and down season, I had covid and battled through injuries. That was not me. I'm coming in this season with a chip on my shoulder and I have to make sure we go to Nationals to place in the top-40."
Freshman Gemma Goddard
on her first collegiate race:
"I was definitely nervous coming into the race. The delays were a surprise, but in all honesty it worked out in the end because the weather cooled down. I felt like coming into the race the team was feeling really strong and I'm excited to run with an amazing group of girls."
on the seniors leadership:
"Having the seniors like Abbey [Santoro], Julia [Black] and other upperclassmen as leaders is comforting. I was entering this race really unsure of how it was going to end up, but knowing that they are by my side and I knew that if I was hurting that I would have them there supporting me"
To learn more about Texas A&M Track & Field/Cross Country, log on to 12thMan.com and follow @aggietfxc.
"I thought Eric [Casarez] looked good and Gemma [Goddard] looked real good in her first collegiate race," said head coach Pat Henry. "You could see a group out there that was trying to run as a team and trying to get some things done together. It's good to get out there early and see some things about yourself as a team, that's what this was about today."
After an hour lightning delay, the gun sounded as the women kicked off the 2021 season. A&M finished 1-3-5-6-9 to total 24 points, defeating runner-up SMU by 25 points. Goddard out leaned Steffi Jones of SMU at the finish line to claim the individual title by .2 seconds, she completed the 4.1k course at 14:26.8. The true freshman jumped eight positions from the halfway mark to earn her first collegiate victory.
Abbey Santoro placed third at 14:27.8, followed by Maddie Livingston in fifth at 14:31.8. Julia Black crossed the finish line sixth (14:33.1), while Grace Plain placed ninth (14:48.0) to round out the top five Aggie finishers.
In the men's race, Casarez showcased complete dominance defeating the field by 24 seconds. The speedster ran the first 2k in 5:53.9, before stopping the clock at 15:14.5. The junior completed the 5k course without ever giving up the leading position.
Joseph Benn joined Casarez with a top five finish, the freshman crossed the finish line at 15:44.2 to place fourth. Fellow Aggies Victor Zuniga (15:54.1), Gavin Hoffpauir (15:56.7) and Jonathan Chung (16:01.9) each recorded top 10 finishes to help the Aggies claim the team title by 54 points.
Next Up
Texas A&M takes a three week break of competition before hosting the Texas A&M Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 25.
Texas A&M Quotes
Distance Coach Wendel McRaven
on the hour long delay:
"It just created extra anxiety. I'm functioning as a coach but we are also hosting the meet, so I'm concerned about us getting the meet in and being a good host. It forced us to start the races so close together, it makes it harder to coach and to take in what exactly happened. It was a lot easier because it was at home, the athletes are comfortable here and I'm not worried about them not knowing the course."
on the women's group:
"The women executed exactly what we talked about. We always use this first meet as a rust buster, we try to control the start of the race because we've just been back on campus less than two weeks. We're using this as a chance to see where we are at, so I really wanted to make sure they controlled the first half of the race. It's a good looking group. They're ahead of where we were this point last year, which is important and I'm pleased with that. I'm excited to see the freshman step up and be a significant part of the group and I'm very pleased with Gemma [Goddard] winning the race."
on the men's group:
"Eric [Casarez] looked really good. He didn't execute exactly what we were talking about before the race, but he looked really good and looked like he had several more gears to go. The rest of the guys built through it and were solid. I'm really pleased with Joseph [Benn], he's a grinder and every year he gets a little bit better."
Junior Eric Casarez
on the season opener:
"I felt pretty confident. It's only the season opener so I didn't want to strain my body too much. I tried to let Coach McRaven know how I felt because I know he thinks I might've been getting a little too excited. I backed off a little bit at 1.5k just because there was a lot of racing ahead. This meet is just a rehearsal, like Coach Henry always says. I just wanted to get the feet moving and get back on the home course."
on 2020 season vs 2021 season expectations:
"I'm back. I wanted to let everyone know that last season was not me. It was an up and down season, I had covid and battled through injuries. That was not me. I'm coming in this season with a chip on my shoulder and I have to make sure we go to Nationals to place in the top-40."
Freshman Gemma Goddard
on her first collegiate race:
"I was definitely nervous coming into the race. The delays were a surprise, but in all honesty it worked out in the end because the weather cooled down. I felt like coming into the race the team was feeling really strong and I'm excited to run with an amazing group of girls."
on the seniors leadership:
"Having the seniors like Abbey [Santoro], Julia [Black] and other upperclassmen as leaders is comforting. I was entering this race really unsure of how it was going to end up, but knowing that they are by my side and I knew that if I was hurting that I would have them there supporting me"
To learn more about Texas A&M Track & Field/Cross Country, log on to 12thMan.com and follow @aggietfxc.
Players Mentioned
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/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
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