Preview: Big 12 Championships

Friday, October 28

Lubbock, Texas

10:00 AM

TCU

Big 12 Cross Country Championships

TCU cross country at the UTA Season Opener at Lynn Creek Park at Joe Pool Lake on September 10, 2022 (Photo by/Gregg Ellman)

Preview: Big 12 Championships

10/27/2022 9:34:00 AM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country

The Frogs kick off the postseason in Lubbock, Texas

FORT WORTH, Texas – After a successful regular season, the TCU cross country teams are set for the Big 12 Championships on Friday in Lubbock, Texas. The women's 6K race starts at 10 a.m. while the men's 8K begins at 11 a.m.

Meet Information
Time: 10 a.m. (Women's 6K) • 11 a.m. (Men's 8K)
Date: Oct. 28, 2022
Location: Lubbock, Texas

Important Links
Watch: Big 12 Now on ESPN+
Live Results
2022 Progressions

Season Recap
Both teams have had immense success this season, even from the get-go at the ACU Naimadu Classic. The women's team brought home the win, which was highlighted by Gracie Morris' third-place finish with her time of 13:52.8. Two other Frogs (Mariana Martinez, Jenna Buchanan) notched top 10 finishes for TCU.

At the UTA Season Opener, both men's and women's teams placed second overall. Gracie Morris notched her first collegiate win with her 5K time of 17:11.5. Additionally, Martinez (18:21.1) Erica Francesconi (18:29.7) and Jenna Buchanan (18:37.3) notched top 10 finishes as well.

On the men's side, three Frogs recorded top finishes. Stone Burke paved the way with a sixth-place finish (15:29.6), while Finn Riley and William Kirk placed 10th and 11th, respectively.

The women's team also notched a second-place team finish at the Texas A&M Invitational. The Horned Frogs had three runners place in the top 10 and defeated Rice, who was the then-No. 2 team in the South Central Region.

Returning Runners
Four athletes return on the women's side and 13 athletes on the men's team. Additionally, four of the five runners that represented TCU at the NCAA South Central Regional are back this season (Mariana Martinez, Jasmin Muhammad-Graham, Peyton McQuillan and Finn Riley).

Martinez paved the way for the women's team last season. She started the season with two consecutive top 10 finishes, finishing eighth at the Aggie Opener (14:47.2) and placing fourth at the Gerald Richey UTA Invite (17:58.9). She was also the first Frog to cross the finish line at the 2021 Big 12 Championships.

New Faces
Gracie Morris made her cross country debut this season. She advanced to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 1500m and garnered Honorable Mention honors. Gracie Morris also finished fourth in the 1500m at the Big 12 Outdoor Championships and placed fourth in the mile at the Big 12 Indoor Championships.

Joining the Frogs this season are transfers London Culbreath and Graydon Morris. Culbreath had a successful freshman season at Arkansas, highlighted by Arkansas winning the team title at the Missouri Southern Stampede where she placed eighth overall in the 5K with a time of 17:24.9. Graydon Morris comes to TCU from Texas where he competed in both meets for the Longhorns in 2020, including a 17th-place finish at the Big 12 Championships with an 8K time of 24:06.8.

In addition, Khadevis Robinson and Roger Cooke will lead the way for the Horned Frogs this season. Robinson, Director of Track & Field and Cooke, assistant coach of track & field/cross country, made their coaching debuts at the ACU Naimadu Classic.

Robinson was Ohio State's assistant track and field and head cross country coach for the last five seasons. A TCU alum, he won the 1998 NCAA Outdoor Championship in the 800m and anchored the 4x400m relay team to a national runner-up finish.

Cooke comes to TCU after three seasons as the Jacksonville State assistant track & field and cross country coach. An LSU alum, Cooke earned LSU's Cross Country of the Year honors as a senior and stayed on to coach as a volunteer with the Tigers.