ST. PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus men’s and women’s cross country squads are set to travel to Northfield, Minn. on Saturday to compete in the NCAA Central Region Championships at the Carleton Arboretum on the campus of Carleton College.
The women are scheduled to begin at 11 a.m., followed by the men at noon.
In the final USTFCCCA Regional Rankings, the Gustie men cracked the top-10 of the Central Regional poll, sitting at No. 7. St. Olaf College is ranked No. 1, Saint John’s University at No. 5, and the University of St. Thomas is ranked No. 10.
Nebraska Wesleyan sits atop the Central Regional poll for the Women. MIAC foes that were included in the top-10 include the St. Thomas, Carleton College, St. Olaf, the College of Saint Benedict and Macalester College.
Gustavus men and women most recently competed at the Saint John’s Fall Finale last Friday. The men took a fourth place finish of six teams, while the women finished third of five teams. The Gusties’ top-seven runners for each squad sat out to rest up for the Regional Meet.
A year ago at the NCAA Central Region Meet held at Central College in Pella, Iowa, the Gustie men turned in its best regional meet finish since 1992 as they placed sixth of 29 teams. The Gusties tallied 227 points, putting them 39 points behind fifth place Luther College which tallied a 188. St. Olaf College was the meet champion after turning in a score of 62.
The women scored placed 11th of 30 teams. The Gusties scored a 267, just 11 points behind ninth place Wartburg College. The University of St. Thomas won the meet with a score of 118.
NCAA Regional Championships Page
2016 Gustavus Cross Country Links: