BEAUMONT, Texas – Lamar University's cross country teams are gearing up to compete in the 2026 Southland Conference Championships. The meet will take place at the Enos Derbonne Sports Complex in Lake Charles, La., and will be hosted by McNeese.
 
The Cardinals last competed at the Texas A&M Arturo Barrios Invitational in College Station. The men finished 23rd in the 8,000-meter race with 620 points and were led by top-100 finishes from Ryan Servantes (86th, 24:20.7) and Alexis Rodriguez (92nd, 24:22.6). The women tallied 917 points in the 6K to place 34th. Ashton Rainey was the lone Cardinal runner to finish in the top 50, crossing the line in 39th place with a personal-best time of 20:18.2.
 
This season, the two teams have combined for six top-10 finishes, with their best results coming at the McNeese Season Opener, where both squads placed third. The women totaled 48 points and had three runners finish in the top 10: Rainey (eighth, 10:07.52), Aubrey Garcia (ninth, 10:30.77) and Sara Verschure (10th, 10:38.18). The men scored 65 points and had one top-10 finisher in Adrian Hahn Vadstein (ninth, 15:08.66).
 
Last season, the women finished eighth at the conference championship meet with 207 points. They were led by Rainey, who earned her second First-Team All-Southland Conference honor after placing seventh with a time of 20:57.63. The men finished fourth with 130 points.

The women's race will begin at 8:30 a.m., with the men's race scheduled to start an hour later.