Sam Houston’s men’s and women’s teams to debut under Torres at the John McKenzie Invitational next weekend.
Press Release From GoBearkats.com
The Sam Houston men’s and women’s cross country teams will begin a new era when the 2024 season gets underway next weekend.
The Bearkats will take to the courses under new head coach Patrick Torres who was hired this summer to lead the program. He previously was the head track and cross country coach at Our Lady of the Lake.
Sam Houston will compete at the John McKenzie Invitational hosted by TCU on Saturday in Fort Worth. It is the first of three meets the Kats will run in this fall.
Cross country is also set to compete at the Texas A&M Invitational on Sept. 13 and the Arturo Barrios Invitational, also hosted by the Aggies, on Oct. 18.
The Conference USA Championships is scheduled for Nov. 2 in Oxford, Alabama. Last season the Sam Houston women placed seventh and the men placed eighth at the league meet.
Patrick Torres is in his first season at Sam Houston after serving previously as the head cross country and track and field coach at Our Lady of the Lake.
Torres, who the head cross country coach and assistant track coach for middle and long distances at SHSU, led the cross-country programs at Our Lady of the Lake to a first-place finish in 2022 at the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) Cross-Country Championships. He was awarded RRAC Coach of the Year for both the men’s and women’s teams. Two women’s athletes qualified for the NAIA National Championships in November.
During the 2021 season he led both the men and women to Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) Cross-Country Championships, as well as a championship for the men’s track and field team and runners-up for the women’s track and field team. Both cross-country teams and the women’s track and field team earned NAIA Scholar Team honors.
Torres participated in the cross-country team in 2016 and the track and field team in 2016-2017.
His awards as part of the track and field team include All-Conference in the 5k and 10k in 2016; the 10k in 2017 and the 3k, 5k and 10k in 2018. He was a Scholar-Athlete in 2017 and 2018. As part of the cross-country team, Torres received All-Conference honors in 2016 and was a Scholar-Athlete in 2016.
Torres received his bachelor of psychology in May 2018 and is currently working on his master of fine arts at Texas State.
2024 Sam Houston Cross Country Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Location |
|---|---|---|
| August 31, 2024 (Saturday) | John McKenzie Invitational | Fort Worth |
| September 13, 2024 (Friday) | Texas A&M Invitational | College Station |
| October 18, 2024 (Friday) | Arturo Barrios Invitational | College Station |
| November 2, 2024 (Saturday) | Conference USA Championships | Oxford, Alabama |
