7 things to know before the 2022 DI cross country regional championships

The path to the 2022 Division I cross country championships is underway with regional championships — the next stage of the postseason — almost here. Here's what you need to know before the 2022 DI cross country regional championships.

What are the Division I cross country regional championships?

The DI cross country regional championships are a series of nine cross country invitationals ran across the different NCAA regions. The nine regions are regions as follows:

• Great Lakes
• Mid-Atlantic
• Midwest
• Mountain
• Northeast
• South
• South Central
• Southeast
• West

In each region, all women run in a six-kilometer race while all men run in a 10-kilometer race.

ICYMI: 8 takeaways from DI cross country conference championship weekend

Why are the regional championships important?

The regional championships help teams advance to the Division I cross country championships each year. The top two teams in each regional secure automatic bids to the championship. The first four regional finishers not from an automatic qualifying or at-large team also secure an auto-bid to the championships.

If a team doesn't secure an automatic bid, it will have to rely on the NCAA DI Cross Country Subcommittee to select it as one of the 13 at-large teams. Only two individual at-larges are selected, making a strong regional performance pivotal to advancing toward a national title. 

NCAA XC: Here's how the cross country championships work

When are the 2022 regional championships?

All of the 2022 DI men's and women's cross country regional championships are Friday, Nov. 11.

Where are the 2022 regional championships located?

Below are the host schools for each of the nine 2022 DI cross country regional championships. 

• Great Lakes: Indiana State
• Mid-Atlantic: Penn State
• Midwest: Missouri
• Mountain: New Mexico
• Northeast: Columbia
• South: North Alabama
• South Central: Texas A&M
• Southeast: Louisville
• West: Washington

FUTURE: Here are the future cross country regional championship sites

What schools belong to each region?

Below you can check out which schools belong to each of the nine DI cross country regions on an interactive map from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

GLOSSARY: Get to know the basic and advanced cross country terms

Where are teams ranked entering the 2022 regional championships?

Here's a breakdown of nationally ranked teams by region.

RANKINGS: Check out the national XC rankings before 2022 regionals

CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY: Men's complete history since 1938 | Women's complete history since 1981

Elsewhere, the USTFCCCA ranks teams within regions. Below you can find the top three ranked teams for each region from Week 6.

Great Lakes

• Men's
  1. Wisconsin
  2. Notre Dame
• Women's
  1. Notre Dame
  2. Toledo

Mid-Atlantic

• Men's
  1. Villanova
  2. Princeton
• Women's
  1. Georgetown
  2. West Virginia

Midwest

• Men's
  1. Oklahoma State
  2. Tulsa
• Women's
  1. Oklahoma State
  2. Northwestern

Mountain

• Men's
  1. BYU
  2. Northern Arizona
• Women's
  1. New Mexico
  2. Northern Arizona

Northeast

• Men's
  1. Syracuse
  2. Harvard
• Women's
  1. Providence
  2. Syracuse

South

• Men's
  1. Alabama
  2. Tennessee
• Women's
  1. Alabama
  2. Florida State

South Central

• Men's
  1. Arkansas
  2. Texas
• Women's
  1. Arkansas
  2. Texas

Southeast

• Men's
  1. Wake Forest
  2. North Carolina
• Women's
  1. NC State
  2. Virginia

West

• Men's
  1. Stanford
  2. Washington
• Women's
  1. Oregon
  2. Stanford

FULL RANKINGS: Regional rankings men | Regional rankings women

Who are some of the top runners to watch in each region?

Here are some of the top runners you can watch in each region during the 2022 DI cross country regional championships.

(M or W indicates men's or women's runners, respectively)

Great Lakes

• Carter Solomon (M) | Notre Dame
• Bob Liking (M) | Wisconsin
• Aden Smith (M) | Michigan State
• Addie Engle (W) | Ohio State
• Katie Osika (W) | Michigan State

Mid-Atlantic

• Parker Stokes (M) | Georgetown
• Anthony Monte (M) | Princeton

Midwest

• Alex Maier (M) | Oklahoma State
• Victor Shitsama (M) | Oklahoma State
• Natalie Cook (W) | Oklahoma State
• Taylor Roe (W) | Oklahoma State

Mountain

• Nico Young (M) | Northern Arizona
• Drew Bosley (M) | Northern Arizona
• Casey Clinger (M) | BYU
• Theo Quax (M) | Northern Arizona
• Duncan Hamilton (M) | Montana State
• Everlyn Kemboi (W) | Utah Valley
• Aubrey Frentheway (W) | BYU
• Elise Stearns (W) | Northern Arizona
• Emma Heckel (W) | New Mexico
• Gracelyn Larkin (W) | New Mexico
• Samree Dishon (W) | New Mexico
• Amelia Mazza-Downie (W) | New Mexico

Northeast

• Acer Iverson (M) | Harvard
• Graham Blanks (M) | Harvard
• Nathan Lawler (M) | Syracuse
• Maia Ramsden (W) | Harvard
• Jane Buckley (W) | Providence

South

• Victory Kiprop (M) | Alabama
• Parker Valby (W) | Florida
• Mercy Chelangat (W) | Alabama

South Central

• Issack Alonzo (M) | Texas
• Ezekiel Rop (M) | Iowa State
• Isabel Van Camp (W) | Arkansas

Southeast

• Parker Wolfe (M) | North Carolina
• Dylan Schubert (M) | Furman
• Katelyn Tuohy (W) | NC State
• Kelsey Chmiel (W) | NC State

West

• Charles Hicks (M) | Stanford
• Cole Sprout (M) | Stanford
• Ky Robinson (M) | Stanford
• Vincent Mauri (M) | Arizona State
• Kaylee Mitchell (W) | Oregon State
• Izzy Thornton-Bott (W) | Oregon
• Zofia Dudek (W) | Stanford