Dustdevil Men Take Second, Women Third At Heartland Conference Cross Country Meet

Laredo, Texas - The Texas A&M International University Cross Country Team capped off a banner year Saturday morning, earning regional berths for both the men's and women's teams.  The men's team took second place over all with 55 points, while the women finished third with 99 points.  Dallas Baptist swept the event winning the Heartland Conference Championship in both the men's and women's divisions. 

Senior Crystal Dickinson crossed the finish line of the 6K fifth overall with a time of 23:48, earning a spot on all the All Conference Team.  Daniela Prado took 14^th overall and was named All Conference Honorable Mention.  Gloria Ramirez finished 25^th with a time of 26:07, Brenda Carrera took 25^th at 26:14, Kassandra Ramirez took 28^th at 26:24 and Alexandra Reyes finished 38^th at 27:55.

Over on the men's side, TAMIU sophomore Roger Rueweler was the story of the day, literally crawling across the finish line to propel his team to a regional birth.  Rueweler's body gave out fifteen yards from the finish, but mustering every ounce of courage left in his body he picked himself up and dragged himself across the line finishing with a time of 27:25 in the 8K run.  His performance earned him a spot on the All Conference Team. 

Four additional Dustdevils received conference honors with Juan Alvarado, Daniel Alfaro, Artemio Romero and Alejandro Sifuentes earning All Conference Honorable Mention.  Daniel Alfaro was also named the Heartland Conference Freshman of the year.  Alvarado took 11^th place at 28:01, Alfaro finished 12^th at 28:18, Romero took 13^th at 28:20, and Sifuentes took 15^th at 28:22.  Cesar Perez, Jesus Villalobos and Oscar Beltran also competed Saturday.  Perez finished 26^th at 29:37, Villalobos took 29^th at 29:59 and Beltran finished with a time of 32:55.

 (TAMIU Sports Information Director, Michael Blake may be contacted at michael.blake@tamiu.edu)