Cross Country Qualifies for NCAA Championships

Published: November 17, 2014 | Author: Jessica Young | Read Time: 1 minutes

Nate Jewkes races at 2014 Mountain Regional Championships.Southern Utah University’s men’s cross country team has sealed a spot in the upcoming NCAA National Championship, preparing to repeat what no SUU team has done since 1999.

The team had a stunning performance this past weekend at the Mountain Region Championship in Albuquerque, NM. The men placed fourth out of 17 teams, coming just behind the University of Colorado, which sits at number one in the nation, and No. 10 Northern Arizona. The team also secured a first place finish at the previous Roy Griak Invitational earlier in the season.

This will be the first time since 1999 that any SUU team has qualified and will compete in the final rounds of the national championships in any sport. 

“To be among the top 31 teams in the country for division one athletics is a milestone for this University,” said Eric Houle, head coach. “And to know that when we leave we are one of the top 31 teams in the country will cap off a very successful year.”

The men’s team will be racing against teams from University of Michigan, University of Stanford, UCLA, and University of Washington.

31 teams were selected to compete at this year’s national championships. The top two teams from each region automatically qualified and 13 additional teams, including Southern Utah, were selected at-large based on the amount of points accumulated during the season.

The NCAA National Championship will be Saturday, November 22 at Indiana State University in Terre Haute, Ind. A live webcast of the championships will be broadcast on NCCA.com. All are welcome to watch the race live at Sharwan Smith Student Theater beginning at 11 a.m.

Photo: Senior Nate Jewkes at the 2014 Mountain Region Championships.


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