Ferris State Cross Country To Compete In NCAA Regional Championships This Saturday
Meet Central Information
Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's and women's cross country teams will compete in the 2019 NCAA Division II Midwest Region Cross Country Championships being held this Saturday (Nov. 8) at Angel Mounds in Evansville, Ind.
The Midwest Region consists of teams from the Great Lakes Valley Conference, the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, and the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.
The women's six-kilometer race is scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m. (CT), while the men's 10k starts at 11:45 a.m. (CT).
The Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles are co-hosting the Midwest Regional along with the Evansville Sports Corporation for the first time since 2016 and the fourth time since 2014. Saturday's meet is expected to include more than 30 teams in each race.
Tickets for Saturday's NCAA II Midwest Region Cross Country Championships will be sold at the gate only and are cash only for purchase. Prices are $10 for adults, $5 for students and free for children ages five-and-under.
Saturday's meet will mark the fourth NCAA II Midwest Regional that Angel Mounds has hosted since opening in 2014. The course has served as the host site for the Missouri Valley Conference Championships (2015), the NCAA II Midwest Regional (2014-16), the GLVC Championships (2019) and the NCAA II National Championships (2017); and is scheduled to host the 2020 NCAA II Midwest Region and National Championships as well as the 2021 NCAA II Midwest Region and NCAA I Great Lakes Region Championships.
The top three teams in each race advance to the NCAA II National Championships, which are November 23 in Sacramento, California, while the top two individuals, or all individuals in the top five, who are not on an advancing team automatically qualify for nationals as well. The remaining teams and individuals will have to await word on whether they are among the 10 teams, nationwide, that receive an at-large bid.
A total of nine states will be represented at the regional meet, including schools from Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Tennessee, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
Six years ago, the Bulldog men's team qualified for nationals for the second consecutive year on the heels of its 2012 appearance, which was the program's first since 1985. FSU went on to place 10th at the NCAA Division II National Championships after advancing out of the regional. The Bulldogs placed seventh in regional action in 2014.
Meanwhile, the women's team has qualified for the NCAA-II Nationals five times in the last 11 years following strong performances at the Midwest Regional.
The Ferris State men's and women's cross country teams are guided by former Bulldog standout and local native Jared Kelsh.
A year ago, the Bulldog teams each had an individual national qualifier for the NCAA Division II Championships after strong performances in the regional, which represented the first time in school history in which each team sent an individual onto the national championships in the same campaign.