Aouani and Hackett Named Cross Country Athletes of the Year
Southland Conference
FRISCO, Texas – Lamar freshman Iliass Aouani and Abilene Christian junior Alexandria Hackett were selected as the Southland Cross Country Athletes of the Year by vote of the league’s head coaches, the conference office announced Wednesday.
Aouani, who was also tabbed as the top freshman in the league, was the men’s 8K champion at the Southland Cross Country Championships last Friday and led the Cardinals to their third consecutive league title, finishing the race with a time of 24:24.6. Earlier in the season, the Sicily, Italy, native was crowned runner-up at the 5,500-meter Rice Invitational. Aouani’s time of 18:40.73 led the Lamar men’s team to their first title of the season against 12 other teams and 116 total runners. The freshman also posted a top-10 finish at the Texas A&M Invitational. Aouani is the fourth cross country runner in conference history to be named both athlete and freshman of the year.
Hackett won the women’s individual title at the Southland Cross Country Championship by nearly 28 seconds, finishing the 6K race with a time of 20:26.6. The Cranston, R.I. (West Cranston H.S.), native has been a top finisher in every race this season and helped the Abilene Christian women win its first Southland championship. She has earned two individual championships, two second-place finishes, and a top-10 finish this season. Her most impressive race was at the Texas A&M Invitational 6K, where she ran her career best of 20:11.1, just six seconds behind the individual champion.
Abilene Christian’s Aubrey Till was name the Freshman of the Year on the women’s side after a 12th-place finish at the conference championship. The Canyon City, Colo. (Canyon City H.S.), native ran the course in 21:48.8.
McNeese State junior Luke Betts and UIW sophomore Keila Rodriguez were selected as the male and female newcomers of the year, respectively. Betts completed the conference championship 8K race with a time of 26.36.3 to take 46th overall while Rodriguez finished the women’s 6K championship in 23:36.3 to take 42nd.
Lamar’s Tony Houchin was named Men’s Coach of the Year while Abilene Christian’s Keith Barnier was named the Women’s Coach of the Year. Houchin led the Cardinals team to their ninth league title in 10 years. Barnier led the Abilene Christian women’s team to its first Southland title.
The top-15 finishers in each race earned all-conference honors. The top-five finishers earned first-team honors, while the next five finishers were named to the second team. The 11th through 15th finishers earned all-conference honorable mention.
Individual Award Winners
Male Athlete of the Year: Iliass Aouani, Lamar
Female Athlete of the Year: Alexandria Hackett, Abilene Christian
Male Freshman of the Year: Iliass Aouani, Lamar
Female Freshman of the Year: Aubrey Till, Abilene Christian
Male Newcomer of the Year: Luke Betts, McNeese State
Female Newcomer of the Year: Keila Rodriguez, UIW
Men’s Coach of the Year: Tony Houchin, Lamar
Women’s Coach of the Year: Keith Barnier, Abilene Christian
Men’s 2015 All-Southland Conference Cross Country Teams
First Team
| Name |
School |
Class |
Hometown |
| Iliass Aouani |
Lamar |
Fr. |
Sicily, Italy |
| Charles Mathenge |
Stephen F. Austin |
Jr. |
Ol Kalou, Kenya |
| Nicholas Guerra |
Stephen F. Austin |
Sr. |
East Bernard |
| Colby Mehem |
Stephen F. Austin |
Jr. |
Princeton, Texas |
| Alex Dunbar |
Lamar |
Sr. |
Barningham, England |
Second team
| Name |
School |
Class |
Hometown/High School |
| Sean Chalmers |
Lamar |
So. |
Dingwall, Scotland |
| Gabriel Steffenson |
Lamar |
Fr. |
Gothenburg, Sweden |
| Tobias Riker |
Lamar |
Sr. |
Mainz, Germany |
| Jeffrey Weisheit |
Stephen F. Austin |
So. |
Mansfield, Texas |
| Nathan Jones |
McNeese State |
So. |
Rhyl, Wales |
Honorable Mention: Cody Brown, Stephen F. Austin; Julien Jeandree, Central Arkansas; Enock Bor, McNeese State; Bradley Traviss, McNeese State; Garett Cortez, UIW.
Women’s 2015 All-Southland Conference Cross Country Team
First Team
| Name |
School |
Class |
Hometown/High School |
| Alexandria Hackett |
Abilene Christian |
Jr. |
Cranston, R.I. |
| Jannika John |
Lamar |
Sr. |
Fürstenfeldbruck, Germany |
| Verity Ockenden |
Lamar |
Sr. |
Shaftesbury, England |
| Diana Garcia-Munoz |
Abilene Christian |
Jr. |
Phoenix, Ariz. |
| Courtney High |
Stephen F. Austin |
So. |
Inez, Texas |
Second Team
| Name |
School |
Class |
Hometown/High School |
| Gemma Bridge |
McNeese State |
Sr. |
Oxford, UK |
| Michaela Hackett |
Abilene Christian |
Jr. |
Cranston, R.I. |
| Shelby Pesek |
Stephen F. Austin |
Sr. |
Corpus Christi, Texas |
| Rainy Castaneda |
UIW |
Sr. |
Laredo, Texas |
| Katrina Fite |
Stephen F. Austin |
Jr. |
Hockley, Texas |
Honorable Mention: Evelyn Chavez, Lamar; Aubrey Till, Abilene Christian; Katja Woelfl, McNeese State; Taylor Anderson, Stephen F. Austin; Brittany Innis, Stephen F. Austin.