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Cavaliers to Conclude Season at NCAA Championships
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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia men’s and women’s cross country teams will head to the 2010 NCAA Cross Country Championships on Monday, Nov. 22 to compete for a national championship. The Cavalier women, ranked 13th nationally, will toe the line for a 6k race at approximately 12:08 p.m., while the men will begin the 10k course at approximately 12:45 p.m. A live webcast of the championships will be broadcast from noon to 1:30 p.m., on NCAA.com.
This marks the third-straight season that Virginia’s men’s and women’s teams have advanced to NCAAs in the same year, and the fifth time in the past six seasons.
At last year’s national meet, both squads earned a 15th-place finish.
Virginia’s women earned an automatic bid into this year’s NCAA Championships by winning their second NCAA Southeast Region title in the past three seasons. The Cavaliers were led by all-region performances by redshirt senior Stephanie Garcia, junior Morgane Gay, sophomore Barbara Strehler and freshman Katherine Walker.
The men’s team earned an at-large bid to NCAAs after finishing sixth at regionals. This will mark the sixth-straight year the Cavaliers have competed at NCAAs and 10th overall. At regionals, Virginia was led by All-Southeast Region performances by two-time All-American and ACC Champion Emil Heineking and redshirt junior Ryan Collins.
Heineking and Garcia, both four-time all-region honorees, will each be competing in their fourth NCAA Cross Country Championship. Heineking became the program’s first two-time cross country All-American in 2008, earning the honor in 2007 and 2008, while Garcia finished 44th last year – four spots away from earning the national honor.
Virginia’s women will be one of five ACC schools vying for the national title, while the men will be among four conference schools at the championship. Duke, Florida State and NC State will all send both a men’s and women’s team, while Boston College and North Carolina will be represented on the women’s side.
The Cavalier men will also be one of three teams from their home state to compete at the meet – along with Richmond and William & Mary, while the women are the sole team from Virginia.
Teams Competing:
Men: Alabama, Arkansas, Brigham Young, California, Colorado, Duke, Florida State, Georgetown, Indiana, Iona, Louisville, Minnesota, New Mexico, NC State, Northern Arizona, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Penn State, Princeton, Portland, Providence, Richmond, Stanford, Syracuse, Texas, Villanova, Virginia, William & Mary, Wisconsin
Women: Arizona, Boston College, Colorado, Duke, Florida, Florida State, Georgetown, Iowa State, Kansas State, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Carolina, NC State, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Penn State, Princeton, Providence, Rice, Stanford, Stony Brook, Syracuse, Texas, Texas Tech, Toledo, Tulsa, Villanova, Virginia, Washington