FORT SMITH – Eight runners have signed national letters of intent to run for University of Arkansas - Fort Smith Cross Country teams this fall, Head Coach Mason Rhodes announced Friday in a press release.
The incoming women's class features four freshmen and a transfer. They are Shaddy Gonzalez, Zoe Nesbitt, Hailey Malik, Rachel Malik and Kailey Pentz.
"We have a very strong class joining our women's team this fall," Rhodes said. "They all ran very competitive races during the cross and track seasons this past year.
"It is going to be a very competitive team when trying to determine who will be our top five scorers for each race. I strongly believe we have 13 women who all have a shot at making our top five this fall."
Gonzalez joins UAFS from Rogers Heritage High School where she was her team captain as a senior. She was named most improved on her team and has personal best times of 6:08 in the 1600 meters, 2:46 in the 800 meters and 22:28 in the 5k. She plans to major in Psychology.
Nesbitt is a graduate of Poteau High School and National Honor Society member. She was a three-time state qualifier and a senior All-Star for cross country and track. Nesbitt ran personal best times of 5:42 in the mile, 19:55 in the 5k and 12:28 in the two mile. She plans to major in Radiography.
Sisters Hailey and Rachel Malik come to UAFS from Lovejoy High School in Lucas, Texas. There they led Lovejoy to a state championship in 2021. Rachel is also a two-time and was part of the CCCAT All-Region team. Rachel has a 5k time of 18:57 and two-mile time of 11:33 while Hailey has a top 5k time of 19:28. Both plan to major in Sonography.
The final member of the class of 2022 is Pentz, who is transferring to UAFS from UA Rich Mountain. At Rich Mountain, Pentz ran times of 20:26 in the 5k and 24:41 in the 6k and led the team with a 41st-place finish at the NJCAA II Championships. Pentz was the Region II individual champion in 2021. She was honored on the Vice Chancellor's List and is a 2020 graduate of Siloam Springs High School.
The incoming men's class has three new members; Oskar Minick, Joaquin Alva and Isaac Teague.
"We have a solid group of guys joining us this fall," Rhodes said. "The three men are from this area and are very familiar with our program and how we train. They will bring some much-needed depth to our roster and boost us to a new level.
"I won't be surprised in the least if we see their names in scoring position for our team this fall as we get toward the later half of our racing schedule."
Minick joins the Lions from Rogers Heritage High School in Rogers, Arkansas. He ran a best time of 16:38 in the 5k and 4:34 in the 1600. Minick also rand 2:00.11 in the 800 meters and plans on majoring in criminal justice at UAFS.
Alva comes to UAFS from Fayetteville High School, where he placed 17th at the Arkansas state championship meet. He helped his team to runner-up finishes in the 6A West Conference meet the last three seasons and placed in the top 20 as an individual. Alva has top times of 16:26 in the 5k, 4:44 in the 1600 meters, 2:02 in the 800 meters and 10:43 in the 3200 meters. He plans to major in Finance and Business Administration at UAFS.
Teague, a Fort Smith native, graduated from Southside High School after finishing 27th in the 6A state championship meet last fall. He finished eighth at the state meet in 2020 and sixth at the 6A West Conference meet. Teague had personal best times of 16:24 in the 5k, 4:26 in the mile and 9:57 in the 3200 meters. A member of the Myles Friedman Honors program, Teague plans to major in Biology with a teacher licensure.