LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – After three weeks away from competition, the Little Rock Trojans head to Fayetteville this weekend for the 37th annual Chile Pepper Festival, where both cross country teams will look to build on their runner-up finishes from their last meet, highlighted by a 1-2 showing from the men.
This will be Little Rock's first appearance at the Chile Pepper Festival since 2023, when both the men's and women's teams placed 21st in fields of more than 30 programs from across the country. The Trojans' best finishes at the event include seventh place for the men in 2013 and 2015, and a fourth-place performance for the women in 2019.
Graduate student
Jordan Smith and junior
Shane Fisher have set the pace for the men's squad this season, pushing each other to strong results. Fisher has posted a personal best in every race, while Smith recorded a new PR in the 4-mile at Harding and has anchored the group as a veteran leader.
Freshman
Zach Morin has quietly emerged as Little Rock's third scorer in both of the team's races so far. After overcoming an early-season injury, he is set to run his first collegiate 8K on Saturday. Junior Deven Stevens, who transitioned from track and field, will make his cross country debut.
On the women's side, freshman
Eva Tice and sophomore
Kamryn Baggs are aiming to cut time off their 5K marks. Junior
Kennedie Rhein, the only Trojan on the women's side who competed at the 2023 Chile Pepper Festival, looks to improve on her result and help lead the team this weekend.
Freshmen
Connor King and
Katie De Gorostiza will sit out this weekend due to injury. De Gorostiza, who was cleared of a possible stress fracture, will gradually return to training, while King is resting a calf issue.
Head coach
Jordyn Naylon said she is eager to see how her teams respond in one of the biggest meets of the season. She expects her team to compete and push themselves up the leaderboard.
"Heading into our more competitive meets, I expect the team to show up in some big ways," Naylon said. "With stronger competition and deeper races, there's plenty of runners to work off of and get after it at the Chile Pepper and Crimson Classic. We've built a solid base with great workouts that are showing our abilities, and now I'm excited to see how they put it all together."
The Chile Pepper Festival has grown into one of the premier cross country events in the nation. Hosted by the University of Arkansas at Agri Park, the meet draws roughly 6,500 runners and more than 7,000 spectators each year. The festival includes collegiate, high school, and open races across two days, Oct. 3–4, with all college races taking place Saturday, Oct. 4.
The Trojan men will run in the College Men's McDonnell Memorial 8K at 10:25 a.m., followed by the women in the College Women's Harter's Habanero 5K at 11 a.m. at Agri Park, located off Garland Avenue in Fayetteville.
For the latest information on Little Rock Cross Country/Track and Field, check out LRTrojans.com. You can also follow the team on social media at @LittleRockTFXC on Facebook, Instagram, and X.
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