ARTICLES FROM USTFCCCA.ORG

NJCAA DIVISION I MEN – Mohammed El Youssfi, Odessa (Texas)

Freshman | Morocco

Odessa is back!

That message was clear after Mohammed El Youssfi finished third as the top JUCO athlete in the Texas Tech Red Raider Open. El Youssfi covered 8k in 24:11.6 at the Lubbock Christian Cross Country Course, finishing behind a pair from host Texas Tech. It was El Youssifi's first U.S. collegiate competition of any kind.

Odessa, a track & field powerhouse in the 1970s through the mid-1990s, is in rebuilding mode. The Wranglers last competed in the NJCAA Cross Country Championships in 2011.

This is the first time that a male athlete from Odessa has been named M-F Athletic National Athlete of the Week in cross country.

NJCAA DIVISION I WOMEN – Elizabeth Ilanda, Odessa (Texas)

Freshman | Tanzania

What a debut!

Elizabeth Ilanda was unknown to most prior to the start of the Texas Tech Red Raider Open. By the end of her collegiate racing debut she amazed many with her runner-up finish, covering the 6K tract at the Lubbock Christian Cross Country Course in 21:02.2. The only runner ahead of her was Texas Tech's Juliet Cherubet, who finished fifth in the NCAA DI Outdoor 5000 meters in June.

Ilanda is the leading runner for the Wranglers, which last competed in the NJCAA Cross Country Championships in 2011. Odessa's harrier history includes a former NJCAA DI individual champion in Tigest Moreda in 1993.

This is the first time that a female athlete from Odessa has been named M-F Athletic National Athlete of the Week in cross country.