COLLEGE STATION, Texas — 1st-year runner Benson Lingokal delivered the second-fastest 8K performance in program history Friday morning, clocking a blistering 23:14.4 to finish 10th overall in a 369-runner field and lead the Harding men's cross-country team to a 17th-place team finish at Texas A&M's Arturo Barrios Invitational at the Dale Watts '71 Cross Country Course.
Competing against a 38-team field stacked with prominent Division I and top-ranked Division II programs, the Bisons compiled 444 points and recorded an average 8K time of 24:21 (total team time: 2:01:47).
Harding finished ahead of 21 teams in the final standings, besting numerous Division I programs including North Texas (474), New Mexico State (507), Texas State (564), Rice (566), UT Arlington (572), Lamar (620), UTSA (658), Richmond (772), Abilene Christian (796), Baylor (814), Sam Houston (832), and LSU (1,012).
No. 5-ranked Adams State captured the team title with 42 points, followed by Appalachian State in second (144), Houston in third (173), San Francisco in fourth (180), and host Texas A&M in fifth (192). Texas Tech's Titus Kimaru took the individual crown with a winning time of 22:43.1.
Lingokal paced the Bisons across the 8,000-meter course in 23:14.4, averaging a 4:40.5 mile pace. The Eldoret, Kenya native secured eighth in the team scoring and was one of only three non-Division I competitors to break into the top 10. Lingokal shattered his previous collegiate best of 23:50.5 set two weeks earlier at the Louisville Classic. His mark stands as the second-fastest 8K in Harding cross-country history, trailing only the school record of 23:11.1 set by Harding Athletics Hall of Famer Daniel Kirwa at the 2009 Missouri Southern Stampede.
Fellow 1st-year runner Noah Cooper delivered another strong outing, clocking 24:12.5 (4:52.2 pace) to finish 76th overall and earn 70 team points.
4th-year runner Brady Axtell crossed in 116th place overall (103rd team point) in 24:34.9, while 5th-year runner Noah Haileab followed five places later in 121st overall (108th team point) at 24:37.3.
4th-year runner Ryan McCarn finalized Harding's scoring five, placing 177th overall (155th team point) with a time of 25:08.3.
2nd-year runner Jack Fink (186th overall, 163rd team point; 25:15.4) and 1st-year runner Rhett Moss (201st overall, 173rd team point; 25:22.3) served as displacers for the Bisons.
Also competing for Harding were 2nd-year runner Noah Brothers (211th, 25:27.3), 2nd-year runner Marek Krisica (239th, 25:38.8), 3rd-year runner Glenn Graves (304th, 26:28.4), and 2nd-year runner Parker Weaver (328th, 26:59.8).
The meet served as Harding's final regular-season tune-up. The Bisons return to action on Saturday, Nov. 7, traveling to Shawnee, Oklahoma, to compete in the 2026 Great American Conference Cross Country Championships hosted by Oklahoma Baptist.
Team Standings (Top 20 of 38 Teams)
| Rank |
Team |
Score |
Total Time |
Average Time |
Scoring Order |
|
1
|
Adams State
|
42
|
1:56:22
|
23:16
|
2-5-10-12-13 (17) (36)
|
|
2
|
App State
|
144
|
1:58:34
|
23:42
|
9-20-34-38-43 (52) (58)
|
|
3
|
Houston
|
173
|
1:59:04
|
23:48
|
14-18-22-46-73 (133) (147)
|
|
4
|
San Francisco
|
180
|
1:59:01
|
23:48
|
11-15-16-61-77 (89) (92)
|
|
5
|
Texas A&M
|
192
|
1:58:25
|
23:41
|
1-6-31-63-91 (123) (134)
|
|
6
|
Arizona State
|
203
|
1:59:05
|
23:49
|
3-27-35-40-98 (145)
|
|
7
|
Cal Poly
|
238
|
1:59:48
|
23:57
|
25-42-50-53-68 (93) (111)
|
|
8
|
Incarnate Word
|
314
|
2:00:45
|
24:09
|
32-62-67-75-78 (105) (130)
|
|
9
|
Ohio State
|
315
|
2:00:44
|
24:08
|
19-41-64-81-110 (151) (239)
|
|
10
|
TCU
|
328
|
2:00:52
|
24:10
|
21-45-80-85-97 (100) (124)
|
|
11
|
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
|
341
|
2:00:56
|
24:11
|
30-33-57-107-114 (136) (186)
|
|
12
|
Odessa
|
359
|
2:00:48
|
24:09
|
4-29-51-109-166 (216) (236)
|
|
13
|
McNeese State
|
372
|
2:01:18
|
24:15
|
56-69-72-76-99 (115) (143)
|
|
14
|
Youngstown State
|
381
|
2:01:25
|
24:17
|
48-71-84-88-90 (95) (106)
|
|
15
|
UTEP
|
402
|
2:01:35
|
24:19
|
37-47-49-131-138 (168) (176)
|
|
16
|
Texas
|
416
|
2:01:47
|
24:21
|
39-74-87-94-122
|
|
17
|
Harding
|
444
|
2:01:47
|
24:21
|
8-70-103-108-155 (163) (173)
|
|
18
|
North Texas
|
474
|
2:02:28
|
24:29
|
28-44-102-117-183 (204) (235)
|
|
19
|
New Mexico State
|
507
|
2:02:27
|
24:29
|
7-65-141-144-150 (161) (170)
|
|
20
|
Texas State
|
564
|
2:03:31
|
24:42
|
60-66-82-167-189 (200) (201)
|
Harding Finishers
