Spartan Cross Country Teams Set Sights On NCAA Championships
11/19/2014 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
NCAA Cross Country Championships Home
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State men's and women's cross country teams will wrap up one of the most successful seasons in program history on Saturday afternoon at the 2014 NCAA Cross Country Championships in Terre Haute, Indiana. The women's 6K race will get underway at 12 p.m. (ET), followed by the men's 10K race at approximately 1 p.m. (ET) and the NCAA awards presentation at 2 p.m. (ET). The two races will be hosted by Indiana State University at the Lavern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course for the 10th time in the last 12 years.
"From our standpoint, there's nothing like it. I would say the similar atmospheres that we've seen are the Griak Invitational in Minnesota and the meet in Wisconsin," said Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Walt Drenth. "A lot of fun. Like we've talked about all year, we just have to control ourselves and be at our best. That's been the thing we've done very well all year."
The No. 1-ranked Spartan women's squad has enjoyed a phenomenal 2014 season and will look to add the first national title in MSU women's history to its impressive list of accomplishments thus far this year. The Spartans took over the No. 1 ranking in the USTFCCCA National Coaches' Poll for the first time ever on Oct. 21 and have delivered a pair of dominating team victories since that time, with the most recent coming at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional on Nov. 14. Leah O'Connor, the 2014 Big Ten Cross Country Champion and Athlete of the Year, led the charge in first place overall with a time of 19:45 as all seven MSU runners placed in the top-25. Sophomore Rachele Schulist was directly behind O'Connor in second-place with a time of 19:45, marking the third time this year the duo has finished in the top-two. Julia Otwell (5th - 20:05), Lindsay Clark (6th - 20:06), Alexis Wiersma (14th - 20:23), Sara Kroll (15th - 20:24) and Sara Stassen (20:42) rounded out the rotation for the Spartans. All seven MSU representatives were named to the Great Lakes All-Region Team, while no other team had more than four selections.
O'Connor was also named the Great Lakes Region Women's Athlete of the Year on Tuesday, becoming the first Michigan State women's athlete to win the award since Emily MacLeod in 2009 and 2010. Drenth was also named the Women's Coach of the year for the Great Lakes Region for the fourth time in his MSU coaching career (2006, 2007, 2010, 2014). The Spartan women's program will be making its 13th straight appearance at the NCAA Cross Country Championships and 16th appearance overall. MSU's best team finish came in 1981 when the squad placed fourth with 122 points. The Spartans have placed in the top-10 on two other occasions, which includes a fifth-place finish in 2007 and sixth-place in 2013. This year's MSU women's team is undefeated in major competitions with wins at the Bill Dellinger Invitational (20 pts.), Roy Griak Invitational (66 pts.), Wisconsin Invitational (87 pts.), Big Ten Championships (26 pts.) and Great Lakes Regional Championships (28 pts.). The 26-point performance at the conference championships was the third-lowest total in Big Ten history.
"This is more than we could have asked for and it's been an awesome season," said O'Connor. "We're just ready to have fun and run fast. This season up to this point has been phenomenal. To win would be amazing, but I think no matter what, it's going to be a really good experience."
On the men's side, Michigan State moved up ten spots to No. 17 in the national coaches' poll after a second-place finish at the Great Lakes Regional Championships. Four Spartan runners were named to the All-Region Team, highlighted by Caleb Rhynard in fourth-place overall with a time of 30:17. Rhynard, a 2013 and 2014 All-Big Ten selection, was named to the All-Region Team for the third straight year after finishing 21st in 2012 and fourth in 2013. Ben Miller was the second MSU runner to cross the finish line in 11th place with a time of 30:31, followed by Alex Wilson (16th - 30:38) and Sherod Hardt (25th - 30:43). Miller, Wilson and Hardt each joined Rhynard on the All-Region Team. Nick Soter (26th - 30:43), Ben Carruthers (31st - 30:54) and Andrew Cusmano (36th - 30:59) were the other competitors for the Spartans.
The Michigan State men's program will be making its 42nd appearance at the NCAA Cross Country Championships dating back to 1938. The Spartans' eight national championships (1939, 1948, 1949, 1952, 1955, 1956, 1958, 1959) rank second all-time in the NCAA behind only the University of Arkansas. As a sophomore in 2013, Rhynard finished 34th (30:41.40) at the national meet to become MSU's first men's All-American since Kyle Baker in 1997. Five current Spartans ran at the 2012 cross country championships; Rhynard (31:10.40), David Madrigal (31:26.40), Carruthers (31:36.40), Wilson (31:44.30) and Miller (32:10.40).
"Nationals is exciting, it's the best teams in the nation. To be able to qualify as a squad is pretty great and I'm really looking forward to going back to Terre Haute with my entire team," added Rhynard.
Players Mentioned
