EL PASO, Texas – The Miners will take the course at the 2026 NCAA Cross Country Regionals hosted by New Mexico at the UNM North Course on Friday the 13th.
The women's 6K starts at 11 a.m. MT, followed by the men's 10K at 12 p.m. MT.
"We're excited to head to Albuquerque this weekend for the NCAA Mountain Region Championships," second-year UTEP head coach Francesca Green said. "This is another great opportunity for our student-athletes to compete against some of the top distance programs in the country and continue challenging themselves at a high level."
Competing for UTEP on the men's squad are Carmelo Corral, Julian Franco, Nathan Kapel, Juan Leal, Israel Quintana, Paul Rotich, and Jacob Yeager.
Competing for UTEP on the women's side are Mia Hairston, Salma Licon, Ashlyn McMillan, and Sofia Ramirez.
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"Our men are coming off a competitive showing at the Mountain West Championships, where we finished sixth and just a few points away from fifth. We'll have our full men's team competing this weekend, and I'm looking forward to seeing how they respond to another opportunity to race together. We've continued to make progress throughout the season, and now it's about putting together our best team performance when it matters most," Green said. "On the women's side, we'll bring four athletes to compete individually and gain valuable experience at the regional level. While we won't have a full team competing, this is an important opportunity for those young women to challenge themselves, gain confidence, and continue their development as we build toward the future."
The Miners recently competed at their first-ever Mountain West Cross Country Championships in Reno on Oct. 30, with the men's squad placing sixth with 155 points (four behind fifth-place GCU), while the women's team was eighth (250 points). Kapel finished 17th overall of over 70 competitors, and McMillan continued to impress in her freshman season, placing as the top Miner on the women's side (43rd overall of 85 runners).
During the regular season, the men's team climbed to No. 13 in the USTFCCCA Mountain Region rankings on Oct. 19. UTEP took third place among 26 teams at Arkansas' Chile Pepper Festival on Oct. 3, and finished 15th out of 38 squads at the Arturo Barrios Invitational hosted by Texas A&M on Oct. 16. The women's and men's teams won the 40th Lori Fitzgerald Invitational on Sept. 19 at Ascarate Park.
"We've talked all season about raising the standard, competing with purpose, and learning from every opportunity," Green said. "This weekend is no different. We want our athletes to race with confidence, be aggressive, and represent UTEP with pride. Every experience at this level helps us understand what it takes to compete among the best, and that's exactly where we want this program to be."
For complete coverage of UTEP Track & Field/Cross Country, be sure to follow the Miners on social media at @UTEPTrack (Twitter/Instagram/Facebook) or visit the official home of UTEP Athletics at UTEPMiners.com.
