RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) head track & field/cross country coach Shareese Hicks says every fall that the Vaqueros cross country teams set the tone for the TFXC athletic year. 
 
The cross country runners are a tight-knit bunch who run hundreds of miles and compete year-round. They're often three-sport student-athletes, representing UTRGV with pride at cross country, indoor and outdoor track & field meets. They're up before the sun, training both on open courses across the Valley and on the track while putting in work in the weight room. From August into November, the Vaqueros cross country teams create momentum for themselves and their track & field teammates by kicking off the competition year. 
 
This fall, UTRGV cross country raised the bar and set a high standard for the 2025-26 campaign with a strong season. 
 
The women's team rose to 14^th in the South Central region, took third at the Southland Conference (SLC) Championships – earning the program's best conference finish in 15 years – and placed three on the All-SLC Women's Cross Country Team. Junior N Vanee Anchike was named the SLC Women's Newcomer of the Year after her ninth-place finish at the conference meet. 
 
Senior PSJA High alum Faith Cruz tabbed a team-best eighth-place finish at SLC Championships and junior Kailey Salazar was 14^th to join Anchike on the All-Conference Team. That trio led UTRGV's impressive performance at the NCAA South Central Regional meet, where the Vaqueros took 14^th out of 24 teams to tab the program's best finish at the meet since 2019. 
 
The men's team overcame some early injury struggles to finish on a high, seeing five runners clock personal bests at the conference meet en route to a fifth-place finish, which was the program's best championship placing in five seasons. 
 
The personal growth was high throughout the fall. All five of UTRGV's consistent women's scorers lowered their personal bests in 2025. Anchike, a junior college transfer, immediately made her mark with two entries in to the history books with the seventh and 10^th fastest 6K times in program history. Cruz, Salazar, senior Lilliana Guerrero and sophomore Santa Maria alum Mia Picazo also improved their 6K times this season. 
 
Senior captain Abraham Morales and sophomore Div. II transfer Nirmit Dahiya paced the men's team throughout the fall. Dahiya clocked an 8K personal best to lead UTRGV at the conference meet, taking 24^th and tying the fourth-fastest time in program history. Dahiya, Morales, junior McAllen Rowe alum Kevin Cardenas and sophomore Mission Veterans alum Manuel Flores all ran personal bests at the 8K distance. Freshman McAllen Memorial alum Roehl Rodriguez put together a strong rookie season, running an 8K personal best at the conference meet and scoring consistently for the Vaqueros.
 
From individual development to team achievements that showed the Vaqueros are on the rise, UTRGV cross country put together a season to be proud of. And the efforts of the distance crew certainly set the bar high and created momentum and excitement for their next chapter. 

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