UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. – The Saginaw Valley State University cross country men's and women's teams qualified for the 2023 NCAA Division II Championships taking place on November 18 at the Tom Rutledge Cross Country Course in Joplin, Missouri. The men earned an automatic qualifier for their finish at the Midwest regional. The women earned an at-large bid after a solid performance at the regional meet.
"Last year was the first year both the men's and women's teams qualified to the same National Championships, so to be able to repeat that feat is huge for our program," said Assistant Cross Country coach Evie Kammeyer. "Going into the weekend we had been really leaning into this idea that we have to be women who are unafraid if we wanted to get out of the region. We had some sickness floating around, and a lot of outside noise and distractions, but they compartmentalized those things so well and ran lights out when it mattered the most. I'm really proud of them for that, and it's a huge testament to who they are not just as athletes, but as human beings. I'm optimistic that the best is yet to come when we get to race the best in the country in a couple of weeks."
This is the second season that both the men's and women's teams qualified for the championship race during the same season, with last year (2022) being the first occurrence.
The men's team enters this week ranked third in the Midwest Region, while the women are fifth in the region. Nationally, the men are ranked 14th while the women are 29th.
"Saturday was a great day to be a Cardinal! The guys quickly and decisively set themselves apart as being one of the top teams in the country right now by yet again claiming a National Championship appearance following last year's efforts, making this the first time since 2006 that the Men have qualified as a team in back-to-back years," stated Assistant Cross Country coach Eric Phillips. "We train together, and we race together. All year we've known that our strength relies on the placement of our pack and how tightly we can keep 5+ guys together over 10,000m so that has been the focus point within our training and our culture. Watching these young men set out and execute a game plan a year in the making was thrilling and something I am immensely proud of them for."
Live championship coverage will be broadcast on NCAA.com at 11:00 a.m. ET.
Results can be accessed here.
Click here for the full list of qualifiers for the NCAA Division II Championships.