WICHITA, Kan. -
The Wichita State University men's and women's cross country teams will travel to
Louisville, Ky., and McPherson, Kan. for the Pre-National cross country meet
and McPherson Invite Oct. 13. The top 8 women runners and top 7 men runners
will compete in the Pre-National race and the rest of both teams will run at
the McPherson Invite.
Both the men and women teams will compete in the seeded
race, which will feature the top 39 teams in the nation.
"We are very excited that both teams get to compete in the
seeded race this weekend," head coach Kirk Hunter said. "It tells us that we
are moving in the right direction and gives us another chance to beat some
teams who are ranked ahead of us in the polls."
On the women's side, senior Aliphine Tuliamuk has won all
three races that the Shockers have ran in leading up to the Pre-Nationals meet.
However, this meet will have the nations top runners competing against each
other for the first time this season.
"I have been looking forward to this race since the start of
the season," Tuliamuk said. "It will show me where I am at and how much I need
to improve before the NCAA meet later on in the season."
"This is going to be an extremely fast 6K race. It will be a
fun race to watch and I know Aliphine is excited for this opportunity." Hunter added.
The men's team is looking to recover from illness and injury
that set them back at the OSU Jamboree cross country meet Sept. 29.
"We are fully healthy and I expect the guys to get back on
the right track," Said Hunter. "We get to compete against Indiana State who is
one of the favorites to win our conference meet so that gives us some more
motivation to go out and perform well."
The Shockers last competed at the OSU Cowboy Jamboree in
Stillwater, Okla. The women took second overall as a team and the men placed
fifth. Tuliamuk won the women's 5K race with a time of 17:01.77. Sophomore
Sterling Spencer finished 17th for the men with a time of 25:10.53
in the 8K race.
Results of the Pre-Nationals and
McPherson Invite cross country meets will be posted Saturday afternoon.
- Wichita State -
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