RICHARDSON, Texas - With both Oklahoma Christian cross country programs set to begin their 2024 season one week from today, Thursday, Aug. 29, the OC men were tabbed third and the women were selected to finish fifth in the 2024 Lone Star Conference Preseason Poll, as voted on by the league's head coaches and sports information staff.

On both fronts, West Texas A&M was projected to defend its LSC title, while DBU was pegged second in both instances. For the men, the Eagles earned 258 total points, having been voted in the top five of the LSC preseason poll four of the last five years, followed by Western New Mexico (240) and St. Edward's (226) to round out the top five.

On the women's side, Midwestern State (355) and St. Edward's (322) preceded Oklahoma Christian and its 318 total points to fill out their top five. This is the second consecutive year the OC women have been picked to finish top five in the conference's preseason poll.

"We have a good mix of energy and fitness at this point," head coach Wade Miller said. "In order to improve on our season from last year, the men and the women will have to train consistently and build toward the conference meet and post season opportunities and help our underclassmen work in a new environment."

Off the men's and women's third and fifth place finish last season at the LSC Championships, respectively, Oklahoma Christian's Ethan Anthony and Tegen Arega for the men and Andrea Garcia Gonzalez and Kinley Kite for the women were named among the Lone Star's 2024 Runners to Watch.

Arega, a senior sports management major from Los Angeles, Calif., and Gonzalez, a senior finance major from Leon, Spain, were both recognized as All-Conference honorees at the 2023 LSC Championships as both runners placed 13th individually in their respective 6k and 8k races.

Anthony, a graduate student pursuing an M.S. degree in Project Management from Melbourne, Australia, was named a 2024 USTFCCCA All-Academic Athlete while Kite is a freshman Early Childhood Education major from Norman, Okla. (Norman North HS).

Both programs will get the new season underway at the RSU Distance After Dark in Tulsa, Okla. hosted by Rogers State Thursday, Sept. 5. The men will then head to Bethany, Okla. for the SNU Invitational Saturday, Sept. 7 at 8 a.m. while the women leave for Wichita Falls, Texas for the Mustang Derby Thursday, Sept. 12 at 7:30 p.m.  

2024 LSC MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY PRESEASON POLL
 

Rank	Team (First-Place Votes)	Total Points
1	West Texas A&M (24)	325
2	DBU (1)	303
3	Oklahoma Christian	258
4	Western New Mexico	240
5	St. Edward's	226
6	UT Tyler	223
7	Cameron (1)	178
8	Texas A&M International	150
9	Angelo State	138
10	Lubbock Christian	122
11	Texas A&M-Kingsville	89
12	Eastern New Mexico	74
13	Sul Ross State	40

2024 LSC WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY PRESEASON POLL
 

Rank	Team (First-Place Votes)	Total Points
1	West Texas A&M (25)	444
2	DBU (4)	416
3	Midwestern State	355
4	St. Edward's	322
5	Oklahoma Christian	318
6	Angelo State (1)	283
7	Lubbock Christian	247
8	Cameron	234
9	Western New Mexico	206
10	UT Tyler	199
11	Texas A&M International	169
12	Texas A&M-Kingsville	168
13	Eastern New Mexico	114
14	UT Permian Basin	84
15	Sul Ross State	41