Mississippi State Set To Compete In Chile Pepper Cross Country Festival
October 02, 2026 | Cross Country
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. โ Mississippi State's cross country team will travelย to Fayetteville, Arkansas, on Saturday to compete in the Chile Pepper Cross Country Festival.
The Bulldogs are coming off a fifth-place finish at the Southern Showcase in Huntsville, Alabama, on Sept. 18. MSU will send 11 women to compete in the 5Kย set to begin at 11 a.m. CT.
Naomi Jepleting and Milicent Kemboi lead the Bulldogs into the meet after strong performances at the Southern Showcase. Kemboi placed 11th and recorded the third-fastest 5K time in Mississippi State women's cross country history at 16:47.7. Meanwhile, Jepleting finished 16th with a time of 17:11.6.
Larkin Johnson and Lillian Overby made their collegiate debuts two weeks ago at the Southern Showcase. Johnsonย was State's third-highest finisherย in 17:43.6.
Brooklyn Quanz and Kaitlyn Burge also return after competing in the season opener. Quanz finished fifth among State's runners with a time of 17:53.9, while Burge recorded a personal-best time of 17:44.2.
Mallory Streetman, Gabrielle Boulay, Berit Janowitz, Morgan Grace Sheffield and Sophie Santucci round out State's lineup. Santucci recorded a personal-best time of 19:10.6 in the season opener.
For more information on the Bulldog track and field program, follow onย X (formerly Twitter),ย Facebook andย Instagram byย searching "HailStateTF."
ย
