Women's Cross Country 10/4/2026 4:00:00 PM Chris Brannick

Central Oklahoma Records Three Top 20 Marks In Arkansas

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Central Oklahoma sophomore Lily Melton continued her standout season with another big performance Saturday at the Chile Pepper Festival at the University of Arkansas.

Melton, a sophomore from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, ran the second-fastest 5k in school history to lead the Bronchos. UCO finished 18th in the team standings. Arkansas won the team title. Mississippi State, Tulsa, UT Arlington, and East Central rounded out the top five.

Melton completed the 5k course in 18:01. The UCO record of 17:14 was set by Kate Jenkins in 1994. Melton's time is the fastest since Maddie Brown clocked an 18:07 in 2018. Brown also ran an 18:15 in the Chile Pepper Festival that season.

Saturday marked the third time this season Melton has recorded a Top 20 5k time in UCO history. She began with an 18:36 at Rogers State and ran an 18:37 at Missouri Southern. In three races, the sophomore has three Top 20s.

Gabija Pukstas made her season debut on Saturday and she also landed in the Top 20 in UCO history. She finished with a time of 18:32. Chloe Ezell made it three in the Top 20 with her time of 18:34.

Reagan Jones (19:06), Julia Trost (19:14), Rilee Shea (19:15), and Maya Winterburn (20:41) also raced this weekend. The average time for the Bronchos was an 18:41.

Central Oklahoma has just one more race for the regular season – Oct. 17 at Oklahoma State – and then will turn to the postseason in November. The MIAA Championships are scheduled for Nov. 7 and the NCAA Central Region Championships are scheduled for Nov. 21.

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Players Mentioned

Gabija Pukstas: Sophomore

Maya Winterburn: Sophomore

Lily Melton: Sophomore

Chloe Ezell: Junior

Rilee Shea: Freshman

Julia Trost: Freshman

Players Mentioned

Gabija Pukstas
: Sophomore

Maya Winterburn
: Sophomore

Lily Melton
: Sophomore

Chloe Ezell
: Junior

Rilee Shea
: Freshman

Julia Trost
: Freshman