RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – The Southeastern cross country team was selected to finish sixth in the 2026 Great American Conference Preseason Poll, the league announced Tuesday.
East Central topped the preseason rankings in first with 114 total points and six of the 12 first-place votes. Oklahoma Baptist and Ouachita Baptist tied for second with 107 votes, while the Tigers edged out the Bison with three first-place nods to the Bison's two. Harding garnered the final first-place vote in fourth with 94 points, and Arkansas Tech would round out the top five with 76 votes.
The Savage Storm capped off their 2025 season with a sixth-place finish at the GAC Meet after compiling three top-ten finishes during the regular season. SE brings back ten players from last season's team that set the fastest team average 5K time for the program at 18:50 during the conference meet.
Highlighting the returns for the blue and gold are seniors
Aereonna Cardenas and
Calibre Keene, along with junior
Cassandra Vargas. In addition to the trio, SE also sees the return of sophomores
Naomi Cotero,
Tatum Cross,
Lauren Garza,
Anahi Machuca,
Mackenzie Robinson,
Mireyda Samper and
McKenna Wood.
Additionally, head coach
Stephanie Heald added five newcomers during the offseason, including three freshmen and two transfers:
Aimee Clarke from Hill College and
Lindsey Wortham from Carl Albert State College.
Southeastern gets the 2026 season under way on Thursday, Sept. 3, at 10 p.m. at the Distance After Dark meet, hosted by Rogers State. The Storm will compete in five regular-season meets before heading to the GAC Meet on Saturday, Nov. 7, in Enid, Okla.
2026 Cross Country GAC Preseason Poll
| Team |
Total Points |
First-Place Votes |
| East Central |
114 |
6 |
| Oklahoma Baptist |
107 |
2 |
| Ouachita Baptist |
107 |
3 |
| Harding |
94 |
1 |
| Arkansas Tech |
76 |
|
| Southeastern |
68 |
|
| Northwestern Oklahoma State |
66 |
|
| Southern Arkansas |
51 |
|
| Henderson State |
34 |
|
| Southern Nazarene |
32 |
|
| Southwestern Oklahoma State |
32 |
|
| Arkansas-Monticello |
11 |
|
