Cross-country zooms into October after strong finishes at invitationals

Alex Smith, Staff Reporter
October 2, 2019

The Tulane cross-country teams continued their hot streaks last week with second-place finishes for both the men’s and women’s teams at the LSU Cross Country Invitational. With a three-week break before the next event, the team has plenty of time to prepare before continuing their impressive season.

The teams season began on Aug. 30 at the University of New Orleans Cross Country Opener. At this opening meet, the Green Wave faced Nicholls State University, the UNO, Xavier University, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and Loyola University of New Orleans. The men’s team ran the 5000-meter, and the women’s team ran the 4000-meter.

The women’s team finished first of the six teams with a five-point lead over second-place Nicholls State. Strong performances from redshirt senior McKenzie Melius and redshirt sophomore Bridgid Selfors secured the victory as they finished second and fourth, respectively. Melius completed the race with an impressive 14:51.76 time, while Selfors finished with a time of 15:33.78.

Tulane Athletics
The women’s cross country team, pictured here at last year’s Nicholls Invitational, aced the competition for the second year in a row.

The men’s team took first, second and third places in the 5000-meter but still finished second in the meet as a team. Sophomore Evans Kipchumba won the event with a 15:13.10 time. Graduate student Tom Coe and senior Carlos Zervigon completed the first-through-third sweep for the men’s team.

Like the strong start from the UNO Opener, both the men’s and women’s teams had similar success again in the Nicholls Cross Country Invitational in late September. The men’s team completed another sweep of first and second with Evans Kipchumba leading the meet once again.

McKenzie Melius won her second Nicholls invitational with a time of 18:56.42 in the 5000-meter. Both the men’s and women’s teams finished second in the team rankings at the end of the meet.

Tulane cross-country’s next event takes place on Oct. 19 at the Arturo Barrios Invitational at Texas A&M University. The men’s team will run the 8000-meter while the women’s team runs the 6000-meter.

Following the Arturo Barrios Invitational, the team will compete at the American Athletic Conference Championships on Nov. 1 in Memphis, Tennessee.