Saturday, November 23
Terre Haute, Ind. (LaVern Gibson Course)
11:15 AM Women's 6K/12:15 PM Men's 10K
NC State
vs
NCAA Championships
Wolfpack Cross Country Headed to Nationals for 2019 Season Finale
11/21/2019 11:05:00 AM | Cross Country
RALEIGH, N.C. – The 2019 NC State men's and women's cross country seasons will culminate on Saturday as both teams compete at the NCAA Cross Country Championships. The national meet will be hosted by Indiana State at the Lavern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course in Terre Haute, Ind.
It will be the 33rd NCAA Championships appearance in program history for the Wolfpack women, a number that leads all Division I teams. Saturday's meet marks the 30th time that the Pack men will be in action at the NCAA Championships.
NC State's teams have both earned spots at the national meet each year dating back to the 2015 campaign. It is the longest such streak for the Pack since both the men and the women qualified for the NCAA Championships every season from 1995 through 2004.
NCAA CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS:
Meet Central | Live Streaming ($) | Live Results
The meet kicks off with the women's 6K final at 11:15 a.m. on Saturday. The starting gun for the men's championship 10K is slated to go off at 12:15 p.m. The presentation of awards will take place immediately following the races. Admission to the event is $10 per person (cash only).
2018 NATIONALS REWIND:
In 2018, both NC State cross country squads secured automatic bids to Nationals with their wins at the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships. The Wolfpack closed out last season with a pair of top-15 national finishes as the men placed 11th and the women finished 13th.
On the men's side, the Pack's performance was its best at the NCAA Championships since the 2011 season when it finished 10th overall. Ian Shanklin led the team with the highest national finish of his career as he crossed the finish line 54th in 30:10.9. The remaining four scorers all finished within four seconds of one another to propel NC State to its 11th-place finish.
The women secured a top-15 team result for the fourth season in a row. Elly Henes became the 13th multi-time cross country All-American in program history. Her 20:11.6 mark was good for 16th place, the best national finish of her collegiate career.
LAST TIME OUT:
The Wolfpack put together strong showings at the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships last Friday.
NC State's women captured their fourth-straight regional crown with a total of 48 points. Henes took home the individual title in the 6K race, leading the field with a time of 19:48.9 to secure her second individual gold of the 2019 postseason. All of the team's competitors finished in the top 30 in a field of over 250 runners, and a total of six members of the squad turned in performances that earned them All-Region honors.
The Pack men finished six spots higher than their projected seed to take third place at the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships. The result was just one spot out of an automatic qualifying bid to Nationals, but the impressive performance earned the squad an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships. Shanklin and Gavin Gaynor were both named to the All-Region Team for the second season in a row after securing top-25 individual finishes.
REGIONAL AWARDS:
The Wolfpack women swept the Southeast Regional awards. Laurie Henes was named NCAA Southeast Region Women's Coach of the Year, and Elly Henes was honored as NCAA Southeast Region Women's Athlete of the Year.
The regional honors were the first of Elly's cross country career. Coach Henes has been honored as Regional Coach of the Year five times after also winning the award in 2007, 2016, 2017 and 2018.
PACK IN THE POLLS:
NC State enters its final meet of the season with both of its squads ranked in the national top 25. In the latest release of the USTFCCCA National Coaches' Poll, the Wolfpack women were tabbed sixth in the nation, and the Pack men made their return to the rankings at No. 24.
UP NEXT:
Following the conclusion of cross country season, NC State's distance athletes will prepare for the start of the indoor track and field season. Select members of the Pack will head to the JDL Kickoff Classic in Winston-Salem, N.C., on Dec. 7.
It will be the 33rd NCAA Championships appearance in program history for the Wolfpack women, a number that leads all Division I teams. Saturday's meet marks the 30th time that the Pack men will be in action at the NCAA Championships.
NC State's teams have both earned spots at the national meet each year dating back to the 2015 campaign. It is the longest such streak for the Pack since both the men and the women qualified for the NCAA Championships every season from 1995 through 2004.
NCAA CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS:
Meet Central | Live Streaming ($) | Live Results
The meet kicks off with the women's 6K final at 11:15 a.m. on Saturday. The starting gun for the men's championship 10K is slated to go off at 12:15 p.m. The presentation of awards will take place immediately following the races. Admission to the event is $10 per person (cash only).
2018 NATIONALS REWIND:
In 2018, both NC State cross country squads secured automatic bids to Nationals with their wins at the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships. The Wolfpack closed out last season with a pair of top-15 national finishes as the men placed 11th and the women finished 13th.
On the men's side, the Pack's performance was its best at the NCAA Championships since the 2011 season when it finished 10th overall. Ian Shanklin led the team with the highest national finish of his career as he crossed the finish line 54th in 30:10.9. The remaining four scorers all finished within four seconds of one another to propel NC State to its 11th-place finish.
The women secured a top-15 team result for the fourth season in a row. Elly Henes became the 13th multi-time cross country All-American in program history. Her 20:11.6 mark was good for 16th place, the best national finish of her collegiate career.
LAST TIME OUT:
The Wolfpack put together strong showings at the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships last Friday.
NC State's women captured their fourth-straight regional crown with a total of 48 points. Henes took home the individual title in the 6K race, leading the field with a time of 19:48.9 to secure her second individual gold of the 2019 postseason. All of the team's competitors finished in the top 30 in a field of over 250 runners, and a total of six members of the squad turned in performances that earned them All-Region honors.
The Pack men finished six spots higher than their projected seed to take third place at the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships. The result was just one spot out of an automatic qualifying bid to Nationals, but the impressive performance earned the squad an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships. Shanklin and Gavin Gaynor were both named to the All-Region Team for the second season in a row after securing top-25 individual finishes.
REGIONAL AWARDS:
The Wolfpack women swept the Southeast Regional awards. Laurie Henes was named NCAA Southeast Region Women's Coach of the Year, and Elly Henes was honored as NCAA Southeast Region Women's Athlete of the Year.
The regional honors were the first of Elly's cross country career. Coach Henes has been honored as Regional Coach of the Year five times after also winning the award in 2007, 2016, 2017 and 2018.
PACK IN THE POLLS:
NC State enters its final meet of the season with both of its squads ranked in the national top 25. In the latest release of the USTFCCCA National Coaches' Poll, the Wolfpack women were tabbed sixth in the nation, and the Pack men made their return to the rankings at No. 24.
UP NEXT:
Following the conclusion of cross country season, NC State's distance athletes will prepare for the start of the indoor track and field season. Select members of the Pack will head to the JDL Kickoff Classic in Winston-Salem, N.C., on Dec. 7.
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