EVANSTON, Ill. – Northwestern travels to Ames, Iowa on Friday for the NCAA Midwest Regional in the penultimate race of the fall.
The Wildcats are ranked No. 5 in the USTFCCCA Midwest rankings ahead of the 6K, set to start at 10:45 a.m. Friday on the Iowa State Cross Country Course.
"We are moving in the right direction, and our eighth-place finish at the Big Ten [Championships] has the women hungry for more," head coach 'A Havahla Haynes said. "The Midwest region, while it is a larger race, it does not have the high-end depth that was seen at Pre-Nationals or Big Tens."
The Midwest Regional features 37 women's teams including Big Ten foes Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, and Minnesota. The Golden Gophers are ranked first in the Midwest and 13th in the country. Hosts Iowa State are the only other ranked team (No. 20) at the race.
At the Big Ten Championships, Northwestern finished eighth behind a sixth place and First-Team All-Big Ten finish from sophomore Aubrey Roberts, who ran a 20:26.3 6K. Fellow sophomore Sarah Nicholson also finished 31st with a 21:17.3.
Roberts is looking for her second qualification to the NCAA Championships, after finishing fourth overall at the Midwest Regional last season and becoming the first Wildcat since 2010 to make the National Championships. Nicholson is in the hunt for an individual berth as well.
At the Conference championships in Bloomington, senior Isabel Seidel also ran a sub-22 minute 6K with a 21:49.7. Haley Albers, Sara Coffey, Hannah Tobin, Andrea Ostenso and Amanda Davis all finished within 12 seconds of each other in the 22:26-22:38 range.
"If our three through seven runners can maintain a tight pack within 20 to 30 seconds, similar to Big Tens, we will be competitive at the top of the region," Haynes said. "The top seven women have to make the decision to get out from the gun and position themselves into the top-45 individuals by the time they come through 400-600 meters."
Last year at the Midwest Regional, Northwestern finished eighth overall with a score of 264, in between Oklahoma and Northern Illinois.
"It is exciting to see every individual's fitness and confidence grow as the season has progressed." Coach Haynes added. "This Tuesday we had one of the best workouts as a group of ten women that we have had all year."
Live stats, splits and results for the Regional can be found here.
The top two teams and top four individuals not on a qualifying team at each of the three regionals advance to the NCAA Championships on Nov. 18 in Louisville, Ky. Additional teams and individual participants will be chosen through an at-large selection process, which will be announced via press release on Nov. 11 by the NCAA.
The Wildcats are ranked No. 5 in the USTFCCCA Midwest rankings ahead of the 6K, set to start at 10:45 a.m. Friday on the Iowa State Cross Country Course.
"We are moving in the right direction, and our eighth-place finish at the Big Ten [Championships] has the women hungry for more," head coach 'A Havahla Haynes said. "The Midwest region, while it is a larger race, it does not have the high-end depth that was seen at Pre-Nationals or Big Tens."
The Midwest Regional features 37 women's teams including Big Ten foes Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, and Minnesota. The Golden Gophers are ranked first in the Midwest and 13th in the country. Hosts Iowa State are the only other ranked team (No. 20) at the race.
At the Big Ten Championships, Northwestern finished eighth behind a sixth place and First-Team All-Big Ten finish from sophomore Aubrey Roberts, who ran a 20:26.3 6K. Fellow sophomore Sarah Nicholson also finished 31st with a 21:17.3.
Roberts is looking for her second qualification to the NCAA Championships, after finishing fourth overall at the Midwest Regional last season and becoming the first Wildcat since 2010 to make the National Championships. Nicholson is in the hunt for an individual berth as well.
At the Conference championships in Bloomington, senior Isabel Seidel also ran a sub-22 minute 6K with a 21:49.7. Haley Albers, Sara Coffey, Hannah Tobin, Andrea Ostenso and Amanda Davis all finished within 12 seconds of each other in the 22:26-22:38 range.
"If our three through seven runners can maintain a tight pack within 20 to 30 seconds, similar to Big Tens, we will be competitive at the top of the region," Haynes said. "The top seven women have to make the decision to get out from the gun and position themselves into the top-45 individuals by the time they come through 400-600 meters."
Last year at the Midwest Regional, Northwestern finished eighth overall with a score of 264, in between Oklahoma and Northern Illinois.
"It is exciting to see every individual's fitness and confidence grow as the season has progressed." Coach Haynes added. "This Tuesday we had one of the best workouts as a group of ten women that we have had all year."
Live stats, splits and results for the Regional can be found here.
The top two teams and top four individuals not on a qualifying team at each of the three regionals advance to the NCAA Championships on Nov. 18 in Louisville, Ky. Additional teams and individual participants will be chosen through an at-large selection process, which will be announced via press release on Nov. 11 by the NCAA.
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