The cross country season is nearing a close with the 2019 NCAA DI National Championships quickly approaching.
Friday, Nov. 15 marked the congregation of all cross country programs nationwide for the sport's regionals. For the first time all season, all teams performed on the same day in their respective regionals. There are nine sites altogether. Including a link to the host site's webpage, they are as follows: Great Lakes, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Mountain, Northeast, South, South Central, Southeast, West.
Below we have included the results from each regional, including the teams that will advance to the 2019 NCAA DI Cross Country National Championships on Saturday, November 23 — and those the selection committee selected to advance to the championships.
RANKINGS: See where each men's team ranks in the updated USTFCCCA poll | Women's
The top two finishers of each regional automatically qualify for the national championships, equating to 18 immediate team qualifiers. Four of the top individuals who do not finish on a qualifying team will also advance to the national championships. The remaining 13 at-large teams and two additional individuals will be selected by the NCAA DI Cross Country Subcommittee. A total of 255 participants will be at the national championships.
Unlike the regular season races when the men competed in 8ks, they transitioned to the 10k regional race in preparation for the national championship 10k race. The women continued on with the 6k.
XC ESSENTIALS: Get to know the basic and advanced terms of cross country
Great Lakes
Men's 10k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Purdue (79), Notre Dame (85)
Women's 6k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Michigan State (49), Michigan (74)
Regional results are posted here.
Great Lakes Regional preview
The University of Wisconsin is hosting the 2019 NCAA Great Lake Region Cross Country Championships on Friday, Nov. 15, at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course. The 11-year old course played host to last year's national championships.
Here are the starting box assignments
Flotrack will be live broadcasting the event.
Schedule
- Women's 6k — 11:30 a.m. CT
- Men's 10k — 12:30 p.m. CT
Teams to watch
Men: No. 9 Wisconsin, No. 13 Indiana, No. 16 Michigan, No. 17 Purdue, No. 19 Notre Dame
The host team and reigning Great Lakes region and Big Ten champion headlines the men's side of the Great Lakes Regional. Wisconsin finished eighth in the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational behind Purdue and Indiana. If the same result happens on Friday, the Badgers will miss out on an automatic ticket to the nationals championships. Indiana followed its impressive seventh-place finish with a second-place finish at the Big Ten Championships, two places in front of Purdue.
Michigan offers an intriguing matchup after finishing third at the Big Ten Championships, three weeks after placing 11th at the Nuttycombe. Momentum also favors Notre Dame with its second-place finish at ACC Championships.
Women: No. 6 Michigan State, No. 7 Wisconsin, No. 11 Michigan, T-No. 16 Notre Dame, No. 20 Ohio State, No. 24 Butler
Consistency has been the theme for Michigan State this season. Four first-place finishes at meets, including the Big Ten Championships, has set the Spartans up for another top of the podium opportunity. Two disparities came during the middle of the season, however, and the major halt was at Wisconsin for the Nuttycombe Invitational. Their fifth-place finish came in a field of 20 ranked teams. Wisconsin was one of the four teams to finish ahead of the Spartans.
The two teams met at the Big Ten Championships, manning first and second; Michigan State bettered Wisconsin by six points. Michigan, the reigning Great Lakes region champion, followed 16 points behind the Badgers for the third spot.
Mountain
Men's 10k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Northern Arizona (21), Colorado (53)
Women's 6k automatic qualifiers
Teams: BYU (70), New Mexico (83)
Regional results are posted here.
Mountain Regional preview
For the first time since 2010, Utah will host the 2019 NCAA Mountain Region Cross Country Championships at the Rose Park Golf Course in Salt Lake City.
Here are the starting box assignments
Flotrack will be live broadcasting the event.
Schedule:
- Women's 6k — 11 a.m. MT
- Men's 10k — Noon MT
Teams to watch
Men: No. 1 Northern Arizona, No. 2 BYU, No. 3 Colorado, No. 20 Utah State, No. 25 Colorado State
The Mountain region might be the event to watch on Friday with the three best teams in the country competing for two automatic entries into the national championship. Northern Arizona, the reigning mountain region and national champion, BYU and Colorado competed closely last year at the regional. BYU finished behind the Lumberjacks, followed by Colorado and Colorado State. The Lumberjacks are expected to win for the fourth straight year after placing first in all four of their meets this season.
UPSET: Who can challenge 3-time defending champ Northern Arizona this season?
BYU has mimicked a similar theme this season with three first place victories and one second-place finish at the Bill Dellinger Invitational. Colorado hasn't shied from the upper echelon, placing first in the Piane Invitational and second in pre-nationals — followed by a first-place finish at the Pac-12 Championships.
Women: No. 3 BYU, No. 8 Colorado, No. 9 Utah, No. 10 New Mexico, No. 15 Air Force, T-No. 16 Northern Arizona
Aside from a dominant performance this season by No. 1 Arkansas and No. 2 Stanford, BYU has jumped into the No. 3 ranking with four first-place finishes throughout the season and a second-place finish behind Washington at pre-nationals. Colorado's successful season began with two straight second-place finishes at the Wyoming and Joe Piane Invitationals.
The host of this year's mountain regional, Utah, topped the podium at the Piane Invitational, which also saw the reigning Mountain region champion, New Mexico, place seventh.
West
Men's 10k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Portland (65), Stanford (78)
Women's 6k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Stanford (39), Washington (49)
Regional results are posted here.
West Regional preview
Washington State is set to host the 2019 NCAA West Region Cross Country Championships, which is being held at the Colfax Golf Club.
Here are the starting box assignments
Flotrack will be live broadcasting the event.
Schedule
- Women's 6k — 11:30 a.m. PT
- Men's 10k — 12:30 p.m. PT
Teams to watch
Men: No. 4 Stanford, No. 6 Oregon, No. 10 UCLA, T-No. 11 Portland, No. 14 Washington, No. 27 Boise State
Second-place finishes at the John McNichols Invitational and the Nuttycombe Invitational led to Stanford's third-place finish at the Pac-12 Championships. The Cardinal's short two-event regular season creates a tough postseason prediction picture, so Friday's west regional should answer any questions entering the national championships. Oregon placed second behind Stanford after a 10th-place finish at the Nuttycombe Invitational. UCLA responded to Oregon's first-place victory at the Dellinger Invitational with a fifth-place finish at the Nuttycombe Invitational, bettering the Pac-12 rival five places. A ninth-place finish at the Nuttycombe Invitational spotlights the season Portland, the reigning west region champion, has had so far, as a result of scheduling less high-profile meets.
Women: No. 2 Stanford, No. 4 Washington, No. 13 Boise State, No. 19 Oregon, No. 30 California Baptist
Both Stanford cross country programs are donning incredible performances this season, enough to make both strong competitors for the national title. The Cardinal with the best chance at scoring the trophy, thought, is the women, and Friday's race should be a prime example. Their first-place finish at the Pac-12 Championships bested Washington, Utah, Colorado and Oregon — the reigning west region champion. A fifth-place finish at the Joe Piane Invitational and first-place finish at pre-nationals sets the Huskies up for an interesting battle against the Cardinal for the region.
Midwest
Men's 10k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Tulsa (37), Iowa State (54)
Women's 6k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Illinois (108), Tulsa (123)
Regional results are posted here.
Midwest Regional preview
This season marks the open of the new Oklahoma State Cross Country Course, and in appreciation of its state-of-the-art design, the course is set to host the 2019 NCAA Midwest Region Cross Country Championships and the 2020 NCAA Cross Country Championships.
Here are the starting box assignments.
Flotrack will be live broadcasting the event
Schedule
- Women's 6k —10:30 a.m. CT
- Men's 10k — 11:30 a.m. CT
Teams to watch
Men: No. 5 Iowa State, No. 7 Tulsa, No. 23 Oklahoma State
For two consecutive years, the Iowa State men's and women's teams have won the midwest region championship. But this season, the Cyclones have a key competitor in Tulsa, a team that finished third at the Nuttycombe Invitational, ahead of the Cyclones' fourth-place finish, and swept the AAC Championships. Iowa State hopes to pair its victory at the Big-12 Championships with a gold medal performance at the midwest regional.
Women: No. 22 Illinois, No. 25 Oklahoma State, No. 26 Minnesota
Placing within the first two spots is imperative for this lineup of competitors because of the automatic qualification rule. The road to the national championships is much harder and unpredictable if you place outside of the top two with the decision left to the committee to decide which teams qualify for the title race.
Illinois has consistently stayed in the middle of the pack this season. Sixth-place finishes at the McNichols Invitational and pre-nationals have kept the Illini competitive in the rankings. Oklahoma State finished 11th at pre-nationals, five places behind Illinois. The two teams are favored to automatically qualify for the title race, but Minnesota won't give up easily.
South
Men's 10k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Ole Miss (69), Middle Tennessee State (83)
Women's 6k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Florida State (42), Ole Miss (100)
Regional results are posted here.
South Regional preview
Florida State hosts the 2019 NCAA South Region Cross Country Championships at the Apalachee Regional Park.
Here are the starting box assignments
Flotrack will be live broadcasting the event.
Schedule
- Women's 6k — 8:30 a.m. ET
- Men's 10k — 9:30 a.m. ET
Teams to watch
Men: T-No. 11 Ole Miss, No. 15 Middle Tennessee, No. 28 Alabama
Ole Miss returns as the South region reigning men's champion.
Women: No. 12 Florida State, No. 27 Ole Miss
Florida State returns as the South region reigning women's champion.
Southeast
Men's 10k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Virginia (79), Virginia Tech (109)
Women's 6k automatic qualifiers
Teams: NC State (48), Furman (83)
Regional results are posted here.
Southeast Regional preview
Virginia hosts the 2019 NCAA Southeast Region Cross Country Championships at the Panorama Farms Course.
Here are the starting box assignments
Flotrack will be live broadcasting the event.
Schedule
- Women's 6k — 10:30 a.m. ET
- Men's 10k — 11:30 a.m. ET
Teams to watch
Men: No. 21 Virginia, No. 22 Virginia Tech, No. 26 Eastern Kentucky
NC State is the reigning Southeast region men's champion.
Women: No. 5 NC State, No. 14 Furman, No. 23 Virginia Tech
Riding a three consecutive region championship streak, NC State is the reigning Southeast region women's champion.
Mid-Atlantic
Men's 10k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Villanova (37), Georgetown (67)
Women's 6k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Penn State (73), Villanova (77)
Regional results are posted here.
Mid-Atlantic Regional preview
Lehigh is hosting the 2019 NCAA Mid-Atlantic Region Cross Country Championship at the Goodman Campus Cross Country Course.
Here are the starting box assignments
Flotrack will be live broadcasting the event.
Schedule
- Women's 6k — 11 a.m. ET
- Men's 10k — Noon ET
Teams to watch
Men: No. 24 Villanova, No. 30 Georgetown
Princeton is the reigning Mid-Atlantic region men's champion and looking for its third consecutive region title.
Women: No. 18 Penn State, No. 28 Villanova
Villanova is the reigning Mid-Atlantic region women's champion.
Northeast
Men's 10k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Harvard (59), Syracuse (86)
Women's 6k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Harvard (92), Cornell (126)
Regional results are posted here.
Northeast Regional preview
Buffalo is hosting the 2019 Northeast Region Cross Country Championships at the Audubon Golf Course.
Here are the starting box assignments
Flotrack will be live broadcasting the event.
Schedule
- Women's 6k — 11 a.m. ET
- Men's 10k — Noon ET
Teams to watch
Men: No. 8 Iona, No. 18 Syracuse
Syracuse's six Northeast region championship streak is on the line Friday against a tough lineup of competitors including Iona.
Women: No. 21 Columbia, No. 29 Syracuse
Columbia is favored to go back-to-back on Friday at the Northeast regional.
South Central
Men's 10k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Texas (39), Arkansas (67)
Women's 6k automatic qualifiers
Teams: Arkansas (15), Texas (63)
Regional results are posted here.
South Central Regional preview
Here are the starting box assignments
Flotrack will be live broadcasting the event.
Schedule
- Women's 6k — 11 a.m. CT
- Men's 10k — Noon CT
Teams to watch
Men: No. 29 Texas
Texas is favored to break Arkansas' six-straight South Central region championship streak, with the Razorbacks receiving eight votes in the last USTFCCCA poll — 18 points behind No. 30 Georgetown.
Women: No. 1 Arkansas
Arkansas, the favorite to win the national championship, is set to make a statement at Friday's South Central regional with a try for its ninth-straight region championship.
