STEPHENVILLE, Texas — Tarleton State Cross Country will be back in action for the final time of the regular season on Friday morning at the Watts Cross Country Course on the campus of Texas A&M for the Arturo Barrios Invitational.
 
The Texans had 12 days since their last time out at the Chile Pepper Festival hosted by Arkansas. This meet will be Tarleton State's final regular season competition before the postseason starts beginning with the WAC Cross Country Championships hosted by UT Arlington on Halloween morning, Oct. 31.
 
Tarleton State re-entered the South Central Regional Rankings on the men's side on Oct. 6. The Texans climbed back into the final top 15 slot after falling out earlier in the season. The men were ranked eighth in the preseason rankings and did not compete as a full team until  their second meet of the season.
 
Both squads turned in a top 15 performance with the men placing 11^th in the field of 31 teams and the women 14^th amongst 32 on Oct. 4 in Arkansas. Tyler Hedgepeth led the pack for the third consecutive time this season placing 49^th overall in 25:04.4 in his first collegiate 8K race. On the women's side, Kaitlyn Gale led the way for the second-straight meet finishing in 33^rd overall in 17:30.0.
 
The men will kick off the Arturo Barrios Invitational at 8:30 a.m. The men will run another 8K race, consisting of just over two laps of the Watts Cross Country Course. The women will follow with their gun time slated for 9:15 a.m. The race will be the first 6K race of the season for the Purple and White. Live results will be provided by flashresults. Follow @tarletonxctrack on Instagram and X for the latest updates and highlights.
 
Last season at the Arturo Barrios Invitational, the men placed 11^th overall ahead of five South Central Region ranked squads. Jace Poole was the third Texan to cross in 23:58.8, setting his new personal best at the time. Kellen Frickel was the fifth Texan across in just under 25 minutes. On the women's side Kaitlyn Gale finished second on the team in 21:46.1 to claim 174^th place. Gale is the only current Texan to run at the meet for the Purple and White last season. Running for Houston, Madalyn Hunter finished in 165^th in 21:42.2 and Carley Thornton finished in 264^th in 22:37.7.
 
The Texans will race their first meet of the postseason next, the WAC Cross Country Championships in Arlington, Texas on the morning of Friday, Oct. 31. The Halloween morning event is set to take place at the Harold Patterson Sports Complex. The Texans raced that course earlier this season with both the men and women competing in 5K's at the Gerald Richey Invitational.