BEAUMONT, Texas – Lamar University's men's and women's cross country teams have been picked to finish fourth and sixth, respectively, in the 2026 Southland Conference preseason polls, announced officials Thursday afternoon.
 
The preseason polls were voted upon by each program's head coaches and sports information directors. Only one ballot was submitted per institution and voting for one's own program was prohibited.
 
The men's team scored 83 points to finish five points ahead of UTRGV and McNeese, which tied for fifth. SFA finished with 121 points and 11 first-place votes to take the top spot while Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (109 points, one first-place vote) and UIW (102) rounded out the top three.
 
The Cardinal men return 10 letterwinners from last season with Kenny Bibb, Geovany Cisneros, Adrian Hahn Vadstein, Dominick Luna, Luke Parker, Alexis Rodriguez, Aaron Saenz, Ryan Servantes, Riley Trent and Beau Waldrop. They are joined by four newcomers (one transfer, three freshmen).
 
The women's team totaled 69 points. SFA's women's team lands in the top spot with 117 points and seven first-place votes, just two points ahead of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (115), which received the other five first-place votes. LU trailed fifth-place McNeese by six but was ahead of New Orleans by nine.
 
Five Cardinals return for the women, headlined by Ashton Rainey, who earned SLC First Team honors in last season's conference championships. Other returnees include Eleana Campos, Anna Eischen, Bianka Paciorek and Lauren Polk. The Cardinals are also adding six freshmen and one transfer to the team.
 
LU's season will start Friday, Sept. 4^th in Lake Charles at the McNeese Season Opener. The meet will take place at the Enos Derbonne Sports Complex.