WACO, Texas – Southeastern Louisana junior Kalphys Kemboi will miss Saturday's NCAA south central regional cross country meet following an injury suffered earlier this week.
Kemboi was the Lions' top finisher at the Southland Conference championships on Oct. 31, placing sixth by clocking a time of 24:23 in the 8K event. That earned him All-Conference honors. Other season highlights included a third place finish at the Azalea City Classic on Sept. 19, a win at the LSU Invitational on Sept. 26, and a fourth place showing at the Watson Ford Invitational on Oct. 10.
“We've switched gears with Kalphys out,” head coach Sean Brady said. “As far as final rankings, I'm not sure if we can finish in the top 15, which was our goal.”
After not placing among the uppermost 15 of the latest United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association poll, the Lion men will not be eligible to advance to nationals as a team, but will still score at regionals. Individual student-athletes will have a chance to move on.
Junior Henry Rop also earned All-Conference honors, crossing the finish line at 24:25, good for ninth place at the Southland 8K competition. He'll lead a contingent that includes Jessie McDavitt, Scott Richardson, Nelphat Boit, Zac Dufrene, Kyle Golden and Jaron Ortega in a meet that features cross country powerhouses from the Big 12, Conference USA and SWAC, along with rivals from the Southland.
“We have a relatively young team,” Brady said. “Exposure to this type of competition is invaluable, to be able to run at the highest level. We haven't seen anything like this all year.”
The Lady Lions will be represented by a pair of individuals, Dorcus Kapkiai and Naomi Jeruto. Kapkiai was Southeastern's top female finisher at the conference championships, coming in 12th place with a time of 21:42 in the 6K race. Naomi Jeruto was next for Southeastern, placing 37th at 22:46.
The men's regional race will be 10K. The women's competition will be 6K.
