Rice Owls Dominate at 49th Annual Rice Invitational Cross Country

HOUSTON, Texas – The Rice Owls women’s cross country team triumphed at the 49th annual Rice Invitational on Friday, with all five scorers finishing in the top six positions, claiming the team title.

Head Coach Jim Bevan expressed his satisfaction with the team’s performance, highlighting their competitive spirit. “It’s always nice to run in front of your home fans, this is the only time we as a team will get to do so this fall,” he said. “I was very happy with the team’s performance across the board. All our runners ran exceedingly well.”

Junior Alex Gobran led the way for the Owls, winning the women’s 4k race after finishing ninth at last year’s Rice Invite. Graduate transfer showed strong performance by finishing second. All-Conference and All-Region honoree followed in third, with others rounding out the scoring positions in fifth and sixth.

This victory marks Rice’s second consecutive team title, as they also claimed first last year. The Owls will look to build on this success when they compete at the Chile Pepper Festival on October 4 at the University of Arkansas.