USTFCCCA News & Notes
WEEKEND REVIEW: 2019 NCAA DI Cross Country Regional Championships
The hunt for automatic berths into the 2019 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships is on!
From The USTFCCCA InfoZone: NCAA DI Regional Championships Central
By the end of the day, we’ll know which 36 teams (18 men’s and 18 women’s) earned a trip through the express lane to Terre Haute, Indiana. That’s right: The top-2 men’s and women’s teams at each of the nine regional championship sites automatically advance to compete on the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course next Saturday, November 23.
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Keep reading below for our recap of one of the most exciting days of the year!
NOTE: Regions are listed alphabetically, not in sequential order of completion.
Men’s Story
No. 17 Purdue won an absolute battle and captured its first regional title in program history. The Boilermakers scored 79 points, six fewer than No. 19 Notre Dame which earned the other automatic berth to NCAAs. No. 17 Michigan (86), No. 13 Indiana (87) and No. 9 Wisconsin (96) rounded out the top-5.
Purdue took the lead at the 8K split and closed strong over the final 2K. The Boilermakers put all five of their scoring athletes in the top-25, a feat no other team accomplished.
Aaron Bienenfeld of Cincinnati won the individual title in 29:59.9, nearly six seconds ahead of runner-up Daniel Lawton of Butler.
Women’s Story
No. 6 Michigan State won its first regional title since 2014, scoring 49 points with No. 11 Michigan (74) earning the other automatic berth to NCAAs. No. 7 Wisconsin (100), No. 20 Ohio State (134), No. 16 Notre Dame (144) rounded out the top-5.
The Spartans surged into the lead at the 4K split and never looked back. Michigan State went from down 50 points at the 2K split to leading by 12 points 2000 meters later. The Spartans continued to put the foot down on the gas pedal, putting all five of their scoring athletes in the top-20, a feat no other team in the field accomplished.
Alicia Monson of Wisconsin won the individual title in 19:59.9, just 1.2 seconds ahead of runner-up Annie Fuller of Michigan State.
Men’s Story
No. 24 Villanova won its first regional title since 2014, scoring 37 points with No. 30 Georgetown (67) earning the other automatic berth to NCAAs. Princeton (82), RV Temple (100) and RV Penn (148) rounded out the top-5.
The Wildcats made quick work of the competition as they put all five of their scoring athletes in the top-15, led by Josh Phillips in third place.
Camren Fischer of Princeton won the individual title in 29:58.8, a full three seconds ahead of runner-up Jake Brohy of Navy.
Women’s Story
No. 18 Penn State won its fourth regional title in the past five years, edging No. 28 Villanova by a score of 73-77. The Nittany Lions and the Wildcats earned automatic berths to NCAAs, while RV Georgetown (91), Princeton (93) and West Virginia (112) rounded out the top-5.
Penn State trailed by 13 points at the 2 mile split, but worked its way up to just a two-point gap by the 4K split. Then, over the final 2K, the Nittany Lions surged into the lead and finished 2-6-9-15-41 with Kathryn Munks leading the way as individual runner-up.
Lydia Olivere of Villanova won the individual title in 20:02.0, more than nine seconds ahead of Munks. Olivere was one of three Wildcats who finished in the top-4.
Men’s Story
No. 7 Tulsa came on strong to win its first team title since at least 1997 with 37 points over No. 5 Iowa State (54). The Cyclones were looking to make it three in a row. Rounding out the top-5 were Kansas (150), South Dakota State (166) and No. 23 Oklahoma State (179).
The Golden Hurricane – third the last two years after a runner-up finish in 2016 – were led by Patrick Dever, whose third-place finish led a 3-6-8-9-11 onslaught of scorers. Their 37 points is the lowest men’s score since at least 1997.
Edwin Kurgat of Iowa State repeated as individual champion, winning by four seconds over Thomas George of Missouri (30:42.5).
Women’s Story
No. 22 Illinois captured its first regional title since 2006, winning an exciting team race with 108 points over RV Tulsa (123) and No. 26 Minnesota (130). Host No. 25 Oklahoma State (158) and RV Missouri (171) rounded out the top-5.
The Illini were led by Allison McGrath in 12th and with team scorers in 14-18-25-39.
Cailie Logue of Iowa State repeated as individual champion, winning by nine seconds in 20:20.6 over Oklahoma State’s Taylor Somers (20:29.9). They finished in the same order two weeks ago at the Big 12 Championships.
Men’s Story
No. 1 Northern Arizona just keeps rolling.
The top-ranked Lumberjacks stormed to their fourth consecutive regional title as they totaled just 21 points behind Geordie Beamish’s individual victory. Beamish crossed the finish line in 30:25.6, two seconds ahead of teammate Luis Grijalva and five seconds ahead of teammate Brodey Hasty, who finished second and third, respectively.
No. 3 Colorado took runner-up honors in the team standings with 53 points, while No. 2 BYU finished third with 56 points. No. 20 Utah State (106) and RV Weber State (158) rounded out the top-5.
Women’s Story
No. 3 BYU won its first regional title this decade, scoring 70 points with No. 10 New Mexico (83) earning the other automatic berth to NCAAs. No. 15 Air Force (107), No. 8 Colorado (112.5) and No. 9 Utah (116) rounded out the top-5.
The Cougars overcame a 1-2 finish by the Lady Lobos as they put three runners in the top-10, led by Erica Birk-Jarvis and Courtney Wayment in third and fourth, respectively. Olivia Hoj took seventh place and was the other BYU athlete in the top-10.
Weini Kelati of New Mexico ran away with the individual title as she crossed the finish line in 18:58.7, 57 seconds ahead of runner-up and teammate Ednah Kurgat.
Men’s Story
Harvard earned its first regional team title since at least 2005 with 59 points over No. 18 Syracuse (86) and No. 8 Iona (96). The Orange were six-time defending champs. UMass Lowell (157) and RV Stony Brook (176) rounded out the top-5.
The Crimson came on strong mid-way but not taking the lead until the 8.1k split with a 2-5-7 that finished 2-3-5 in the form of Kieran Tuntivaite, Will Battershill, and freshman Colin Baker.
Alex Masai of Hostra won the individual title by nine seconds in 28:42.3 over Tuntivaite (28:51.1) and Battershill (28:51.2). Tuntivaite was also runner-up last year.
Women’s Story
RV Harvard scored its best race of the year with its first regional team title since at least 2005, scoring 92 points to hold off Cornell (126) and RV Boston College (133). No. 21 Columbia (160) and No. 29 Syracuse (203) rounded out the top-5, the latter earning a tiebreaker over Yale (203).
The Crimson led early and never relinquished its lead, though at 4k the margin was just three points over Syracuse. Anna Juul led the Crimson with a runner-up finish as the next four teammates went 18-22-24-26.
Hannah Reichardt of Albany won the individual title in 19:28.4, three seconds ahead of Juul (19:31.3).
Men’s Story
No. 11 Ole Miss repeated as team champion, scoring 69 points with No. 15 Middle Tennessee (83) earning the other automatic berth to NCAAs. No. 28 Alabama (97), Florida State (136) and Georgia Tech (169) rounded out the top-5.
The Rebels asserted themselves as the competition wore on, moving up from fourth at the 5K split to third at the 6K split to second at the 7K split and into the lead by 8K. Cade Bethmann, Farah Abdulkarim and Waleed Suliman finished 8-9-10 for Ole Miss, which won its fourth regional title since 2014.
Gilbert Kigen of Alabama won a close battle for the individual title as he outlasted teammate Vincent Kiprop and Jacob Choge of Middle Tennessee. Kigen pulled away down the stretch to win in 29:49.5, 0.4 seconds ahead of Kiprop.
Women’s Story
No. 12 Florida State repeated as team champion, scoring 42 points with No. 27 Ole Miss (100) earning the other automatic berth to NCAAs. Tennessee (144), Georgia Tech (154) and Vanderbilt (166) rounded out the top-5.
The Seminoles, who won their fourth regional title since 2011, were dominant on their home course, posting the fewest points by a team champion since 2013. Maudie Skyring led the way for Florida State as she finished fourth with her teammates going 6-7-11-14 behind her with a 17-second spread.
Joyce Kimeli of Auburn won the individual title by almost 15 seconds in 19:59.5 over Florida’s Jessica Pascoe (20:14.2), who was runner-up for the second-straight year.
Men’s Story
No. 29 Texas won its first regional title since 2012, scoring 39 points to hold off RV Arkansas (67), which won the past six team titles. Texas A&M (128), Lamar (134) and Rice (202) rounded out the top-5.
The Longhorns were led by individual champion Sam Worley, who crossed the finish line in 29:49.8. Worley wasn’t the only Texas athlete in the top-5 as John Rice (2nd, 29:54.2) and Haftu Knight (5th, 30:37.8) completed the 10K tract not too long after.
Women’s Story
No. 1 Arkansas won its ninth consecutive regional title, scoring a perfect 15 points with RV Texas (63) earning the other automatic berth to NCAAs. Texas A&M (106), UT-Rio Grande Valley (160) and Rice (172) rounded out the top-5.
The top-ranked Razorbacks dominated on their home course, as Taylor Werner led the way with the individual title in 20:30.3. Werner was followed, in order, by Katie Izzo, Carina Viljoen, Devin Clark and Maddy Reed.
Men’s Story
No. 21 Virginia protected its home turf and won its first regional title since 2014, scoring 79 points with No. 22 Virginia Tech (109) earning the other automatic berth to NCAAs. NC State (116), RV Furman (152) and Charlotte (194) rounded out the top-5.
The Cavaliers put all five of their scoring athletes in the top-20, but none in the top-10. AJ Ernst led the way for Virginia in 11th place, as Ari Klau, Alex Corbett and Peter Morris went 16-17-18.
Peter Seufer of Virginia Tech won the individual title in 29:20.7, nearly four seconds ahead of runner-up Athanas Kioko of Campbell.
Women’s Story
No. 5 NC State repeated as team champion for the fourth year in a row, scoring 48 points with No. 14 Furman (83) earning the other automatic berth to NCAAs. No. 23 Virginia Tech (116), RV Wake Forest (133) and Duke (154) rounded out the top-5.
The Wolfpack, who trailed the Paladins by six points at the 2K split, imposed their will the rest of the way. NC State swung ahead by 25 points at the 3K split, pushed that to 29 at the 5K split and coasted home to a 34-point win over the next-best-ranked squad.
Elly Henes led the way for the Wolfpack with the individual title in 19:48.9. Henes won by six seconds over Gabrielle Jennings of Furman. Savannah Carnahan gave the Paladins two of the top-3 runners with her third-place finish, but then it was NC State that went 4-6-19-20.
Men’s Story
Never count out Portland at the 10K distance.
The 11th-ranked Pilots flew to their third consecutive regional title as they scored 63 points, 12 fewer than runner-up No. 4 Stanford. This is the first time that one team has won three regional titles in a row since the Cardinal did so from 2011 to 2013.
No. 6 Oregon finished third with 86 points, while No. 14 Washington (111) and No. 27 Boise State (111) rounded out the top-5.
Andrew Jordan of Washington won the individual title in 29:43.4, as he and Emmanuel Roudolff-Levisse of Portland were in a class of their own throughout the race. Jordan eventually pulled away to win by a little more than one second.
Women’s Story
No. 2 Stanford won a hard-fought victory over No. 4 Washington, pulling away in the last kilometer to a 10-point margin with 39 points. It was the first win for the Cardinal since 2016, while the Huskies were aiming for their first crown since 2011. No. 13 Boise State (86), No. 19 Oregon (145) and Arizona (188) rounded out the top-5.
Stanford was led by the top-2 finishers: individual champ Ella Donaghu, who crossed the finish line three seconds ahead of Jessica Lawson. Jordan Oakes added a fifth-place finish for the Cardinal. Washington had a tight group, with third-placer Mel Smart leading five runners in the top-15 who all finished 19 seconds apart.