FRISCO, TEXAS – The University of the Incarnate Word swept the weekly Southland Conference Cross Country Athlete of the Week awards presented by UniversalCoin.com on Tuesday.  Freshman Garett Cortez (Schertz/Steele HS) was the male athlete of the week and Rainy Castaneda (Laredo/United South HS) was the female athlete of the week.

Cortez ran a time of 24:25 to finish in second place at the UIW Fall Invitational that was held on Saturday at the Live Oak City Park.  He finished four seconds behind the individual winner in the 8K race.  He has now led the team in three out of four meets this year and is quickly becoming the top freshman in the program's history.

In the final regular season meet of her career, Castaneda ran away from the competition as she led the Cardinals to a victory at the UIW Fall Invitational.  She covered the 6K course in 21:30 and won by 19 seconds.  The Cardinals won the Division I team title over A&M-Corpus Christi, UT Rio Grande Valley and Texas State.  Overall, she was the top finisher among 13 teams of all different levels.

The Cardinals are back in action on October 30 when they travel to the Southland Conference Championships hosted by Sam Houston State University.
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