FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Sophomores Colin Swaney and Liliani Mendez led the Kansas State cross country men's and women's teams Saturday at the Chile Pepper Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark.

Mendez finished 22nd with a time of 21:02.8 on the 6K course, while Swaney turned in a 62nd place finish and a clocking of 30:59.4 in the team's first 10K race of the season.

Following Mendez on the women's side, freshman Lindsay Pierson placed 95th in the field of 347 runners with a time of 22:24.9. Junior Morgan Bonds crossed the line at 22:34.5 in her 107th-place showing.

"For the most part, all of our women ran lifetime bests," said coach Michael Smith. "The field was just full of good competition, so that showed on the team standings."

Manhattan native Kory Cool ran second for the Wildcat men's squad turning in a 107th-place finish and a time of 31:44.5.

Following Swaney and Cool, sophomore Alex Umberger and freshman Tyler Fennema ran side-by-side for most of the 10K race. Umberger crossed the line in 160th-place with a time of 32:32.5, while Fennema placed 166th with a clocking of 32:37.5.

The women's team finished 23rd overall out of the field of 43, while the men's crew finished 24th.

The Wildcats will take next week off in preparation for the Big 12 Championships, hosted by the University of Kansas. The Big 12 meet will be held at Rim Rock Farm in Lawrence, Kan., on Friday, Oct. 27.

KSU's finishers

Men's Results

 62. Colin Swaney 30:59.4
107. Kory Cool 31:44.5
160. Alex Umberger 32:32.2
166. Tyler Fennema 32:37.5
172. Arnold Sirorei 32:43.1
180. Danny Schneider 32:57.1
223. Curtiss Feltner 34:01.2

Women's Results

 22. Liliani Mendez 21:02.8
 95. Lindsay Pierson 22:24.9
107. Morgan Bonds 22:34.5
222. Meg Gentry 23:54.6
241. Megan-Anne Perrin 24:10.9
263. Emily Dittemore 24:56.0