Arkansas will open its 2026 cross country season Friday at the eighth annual Gans Creek Classic in Columbia, and the No. 22 Razorbacks will use the meet as an early measuring stick while they wait to hit full stride.
The race gives Arkansas a chance to see where the group stands before the Chile Pepper Festival next week, and women’s coach Marc Burns made it clear this weekend is about more than just the team result. It’s also the first collegiate 6,000-meter race for several newcomers, a step up from the 5,000 meters they ran in high school.
“We won’t be at full strength until the Chile Pepper Festival next week,” noted Arkansas women’s cross country coach Marc Burns. “This weekend for us is an opportunity to kind of see where everybody else is at and give our newcomers their first collegiate race.
“It’s really important for them since it will be their first 6k race. That’s a mental hurdle for the younger women the first time they run a 6k.
We’ve got to allow them to make that transition a little bit. We’re going to be looking to work really hard on the second 3k loop.”
Arkansas will run in the Gold Invitational, which begins at 8 a.m., while the Black Open 6k follows at 9:45 a.m. The meet will be streamed on SEC Network +. Teams are limited to 10 runners in the Invitational, with additional athletes entered in the open race.
The field is a strong one. Host Missouri comes in ranked No. 26 nationally, and the rest of the lineup includes Cincinnati, Colorado State, Drake, Florida State, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Murray State, North Dakota, Northern Iowa, Ole Miss, Pacific, Portland, Rice, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, and Wyoming.
One of the most notable Arkansas names in the mix is transfer Isca Chelangat, who is back on the Gans Creek course after racing there last November. She finished seventh at the NCAA Championships in 18:56.1 to earn All-America honors while competing for Oklahoma State.
Burns was upbeat about what Chelangat brings to the Razorbacks.
“Isca has been great and has fit in well with the team,” stated Burns. “I think she’s enjoyed getting to know the rest of the team.
She’s a beast and there’s only one speed for her. It’s pedal to the metal, and when she goes that’s it she doesn’t look back.
“She really only knows one way to do things. She’s going to get her money’s worth every practice and every single race.
Just really talented with a huge aerobic engine. I’m really looking forward to seeing her in a Razorback uniform and getting after it up front this weekend.”
Paityn Noe, who was seventh in the 2025 NCAA Championship, won’t race this weekend and is scheduled to return at the Chile Pepper Festival on October 3 at the Agri Park course.
For Arkansas, this meet also serves as an early look at the same Gans Creek layout that will host the SEC Championships on October 30. Burns said the goal is simple: run a smart race, execute the plan, and see how it shakes out late.
“Our key this weekend is putting together a good race plan, executing it, letting the chips fall where they fall at the end of the race,” said Burns. “We certainly want to beat a lot of people.
I don’t know if we’re deep enough to win the race, but I think we can be battling in the top three to five. I think that will be really good for us.”
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