Above photo: UMHB women’s cross country is coming off a conference title-winning season in 2024 (Photo courtesy of the ASC)
BELTON — When the ASC Women’s Cross Country Preseason Poll was released on Friday afternoon, UMHB found its name up top, listed No. 1 in the annual preseason ranking from the conference’s head coaches.
It marks only the second time since the revival of the program in 2019 that The Cru took the top spot in the poll. The first occurrence came last fall, and UMHB backed up those high expectations in rainy conditions at the ASC Championships, winning the conference title by six points over ETBU.
In the 2025 preseason poll, Alex Aldaco’s squad secured seven points with one first-place vote, finishing just ahead of ETBU, who had six points and a first-place vote of its own. Hardin-Simmons rounded out the three-team poll in third place, with five points.
It is yet another indication of the rise of UMHB women’s cross country in recent years, as the program continues its build into a respected West Region contender in Division III. The Crusaders have finished in the top two at each of the last five ASC Championship meets, a streak that dates back to their first conference title in the spring of 2021. In the seven years of the program’s existence, UMHB has sent a team to the NCAA Regional meet in five of them, the only exceptions coming in 2018, their very first season of competition, and 2020, when all NCAA D-III championships were canceled.
UMHB’s Drea Gibson and Amiya Crosslin were selected to the ASC’s “Runners to Watch” list, as the duo looks to build on last season’s success.
Gibson came up big at the ASC Championships in November, finishing in 17th place individually with a time of 26:29.50. She then posted a PR two weeks later at NCAA Regionals, with a 25:11.80. The 2024 ASC Newcomer of the Year has experienced quite a journey to collegiate cross country, including a 20-year military career, as was highlighted in a Cru & A by the UMHB Sports Information Department last fall.
Crosslin, who finished 23rd at last year’s ASC Championships, returns for her junior season after running in four meets in 2024. The Little Elm, Texas native comes into the 2025 campaign with a 6k PR of 26:19.50, recorded at the Watson Collegiate Classic last October.
The defending ASC champions will hit the course for the first time next Saturday in Georgetown, racing a 5k at the Stormy Seas Opener.
UMHB men’s cross country represented in ASC Preseason Poll
In addition to the release of the women’s preseason poll, the ASC Men’s Cross Country Preseason Poll also went out, including the conference’s “Runners to Watch” heading into 2025.
UMHB, picked third in the poll, put a pair of upperclassmen on the list in junior Ryan Anderson and senior Andrew Young.
Young, a returning All-ASC honoree, heads into 2025 as the program record-holder in the 8k, with the 27:02.90 he ran at the Watson Collegiate Classic in Clinton, Mississippi last season. The California native was UMHB’s top finisher at the 2024 conference meet, crossing the line ninth in Marshall, and also ran at the NCAA West Regional.
Anderson will also be a key contributor to UMHB’s performance this fall, coming back after a Top-20 finish at last year’s ASC championships. The native of The Woodlands, Texas placed 16th at the championship meet, and also set a new 8k PR prior to that at the Watson Classic, clocking a time of 28.21.30.
Like the UMHB women, the men will make their season debut in a 5k race at the Stormy Seas Opener on August 30 in Georgetown. The field is expected to also include runners from Texas, Blinn College, Southwestern, Texas Lutheran, Schreiner, Concordia, and Prairie View A&M.
Go Cru!