Cross Country: 2023 Season Preview

The Texas A&M cross country teams head into the upcoming season with goals to build on 2022 and make noise in the championship portion of the 2023 campaign. After a preseason in a historically hot August, the Maroon & White will are ready to start their season on September 1 at the John McKenzie Invitational, held in Fort Worth.

“My goals never change,” assistant coach Wendel McRaven said. “We always want to be at our best when it matters. Let’s get to the end of the season healthy, fit and excited about racing during the championship season. That requires them to do the day-in, day-out processes to be at their best when it matters. Control what we can control, and somebody will add up the scores.” 

The men’s squad finished fifth at the SEC Championships last season and third in the NCAA South Central Regional with three of their top five scorers returning. The Maroon & White look to replace the efforts of graduates Gavin Hoffpauir (34th SEC/20th Regional) and Francesco Romano (22nd SEC). 

The women’s team placed eighth at the SEC Championships and fourth at the NCAA South Central Regional last season. They also have holes to fill, with two-time All-Regional performers Abbey Santoro and Julia Abell finishing their careers. Abell moved into a coaching role for this upcoming season, allowing her to be an experienced voice for the squad.

SCOUTING REPORT: MEN

The men’s team welcomes back the dynamic duo of Jonathan Chung and Eric Casarez who led the Aggies in postseason action. Chung returns after an NCAA Championships appearance as a result of a sixth-place finish at the NCAA Regional meet. 

“Jonathan Chung shocked a lot of people last fall when he qualified for nationals in cross country,” McRaven added. “He has put in the work to be in position to do even bigger and better things this fall. He is a throwback runner with a blue-collar mindset.” 

Casarez led the Aggies at five of the six meets last season, including an eighth-place finish at the SEC Championships. 

“Eric Casarez probably leads the way for us,” McRaven continued. “He was a top-10 finisher at the SEC meet last year, he has been a national qualifier, broke indoor and outdoor school records at 5000-meters and has consistently been an SEC scorer on the track.” 

Other top returners include, Chandon Chhikara, Cooper Cawthra, Siddharth Jayaraman and Joseph Benn. 

“Overall, this is a good and experienced group,” McRaven said. “Last year they grew throughout the year and were at the top of their game during the outdoor track season. I am excited to see them continue that momentum this fall on the cross country course.” 

On the men’s side, the Maroon & White welcome six freshmen newcomers, including Ondrej Gajdos from the Czech Republic, along with Texans Carter Gordy, Nick Grams, Hunter Jackson, Jack Johnston, Zack Munger and Noah Willows. 

“This a good group of Texas high school products,” McRaven added. “They all had some pretty big performances during their senior year – either on the track or last fall in cross country. They all may have a chance to contribute and be difference makers this fall. I think we have a crew of strong guys who have the kind of background to allow them to make an easier transition to the collegiate 8k and 10k distances.” 

SCOUTING REPORT: WOMEN

The tandem of Kennady Fontenot and Maddie Livingston are the lone returners from the women’s team’s top five finishers at the NCAA Regional a year ago. 

“Maddie Livingston is our top returner,” McRaven added. “She really came into her own last outdoor season as she became an SEC scorer with her fifth-place finish in the 10,000-meters at last spring’s SEC outdoor championships. I’m excited to see her progress this year.” 

In 2022, Livingston scored in all six meets for the Maroon & White and was the top returning finisher at the SEC Championships and NCAA Regional. Fontenot scored in five meets, including being the fourth Aggie to cross the line at the regional. 

Also returning from last season are top runners Mary Grace Rodriguez, Katelyn Buckley, Emma Ellis and Gemma Goddard. 

“I’m excited to see what the year ahead brings,” McRaven continued. “Even when you have a lot of returners every year is different. They all develop their own personality and their own culture. I like our teams, but we’ll know more after we’ve been back on campus for a little longer.” 

Texas A&M welcomes Madison Brown, a graduate transfer from Dallas Baptist, for the 2023 season. Brown was a 2022 Division II All-American in cross country, placing 21st at the national championships. Her second-place individual finish at the Lone Star Conference Cross Country Championships paced DBU to the title. 

The freshmen newcomers for the women’s team includes a pair of local products with Maddie Jones and Megan Roberts spending their prep career at College Station High School. 

“Megan Roberts is a local product from College Station High School who made a big jump last year to be a top-10 finisher at the 5A state cross country meet,” McRaven said. “I feel like I’ve had a front row seat seeing her growth throughout her high school career. She has the kind of toughness that will pay off on the cross country course.” 

Other Texans among the rookies include Addison Applebaum, Shewaye Johnson and Avery Perkins. Ohioan Jamie Confer also joins the fray after an outstanding career at Beavercreek High School in Ohio. 

“We have a great mix with this group,” McRaven said. “A strong, experienced transfer, some good long-distance types and some young women coming from the middle-distance side of things.” 

THE SCHEDULE

The Aggies open the season at TCU’s John McKenzie Invitational on September 1 at AP Ranch Championship Cross Country Course. 

“We are excited to mix things up a bit this year,” McRaven continued. “Opening at TCU gives us the opportunity to compete in the Dallas - Fort Worth area which is something new for us. It will be a short trip for a lot of our family, friends and fans.” 

Texas A&M also travels to Boston for their other regular-season road meet of the year. The Battle in Beantown is hosted by Boston College at the Frederick Law Olmsted-designed Franklin Park. 

“Going to Boston gives us a chance to see some teams from the Northeast that we might not normally see,” McRaven said. “We get to compete on one of the nation’s historic cross country courses. It has hosted a lot of major meets, including being one of only two sites in the U.S. to host the World Cross Country Championships.” 

The schedule features two home meets at the Dale Watts '71 Cross Country Course, offering varying flavors and tests. The Texas A&M Invitational is slated for September 15 with Arkansas, Oklahoma, North Texas and TCU on the docket, while the Aggies host the sixth annual Arturo Barrios Invitational, a meet gaining national prominence, on October 13. 

“The Texas A&M Invitational will have a more regional flavor,” McRaven added, “and it will continue to include a high school invitational, as well. The Barrios meet continues to lure teams from around the country. We will have teams from the Big Ten, ACC, Big 12 and SEC. It will have a great field with six of seven of the NCAA regions represented.” 

The SEC title will be on the line October 27 in at Charwood Golf Club in West Columbia, South Carolina. The men look to build on their fifth-place result in 2022 while the women try to improve their eighth place showing. 

“The SEC meet at South Carolina is on a new course,” McRaven said. “It’s supposed to be fairly hilly. We’re excited for that challenge.” 

Arkansas welcomes teams to Fayetteville for the NCAA South Central Regional on November 10 and the following week Virginia hosts the NCAA Championships on November 18. 

“We’ve seen the Arkansas course many times over the year,” McRaven added. “So we know what to expect. If all things go to plan, we head to Charlottesville to race on a challenging, picturesque layout at Panorama Farms.”