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Mountaineers Travel to Compete for Big 12 Title
October 30, 2015 01:00 PM | Cross Country
STILLWATER, Okla. – After a week off from competition, the West Virginia University cross country team travels to Stillwater, Oklahoma, to compete at the 2015 Big 12 Cross Country Championship on Halloween day, Saturday, Oct. 31, hosted by Oklahoma State.
The women’s 6k race is set to begin at noon, ET, at the Oklahoma State Cross Country Course.
“The conference has had five teams ranked in the top 25 for most of the season,” said coach Sean Cleary. “The past few weeks has shed a little more light on reality of our pecking order. I have total confidence that we will run our best race of the season, and we will continue our progression through the NCAA Regional.”
Live results, video highlights and championship info can be found at Big12Sports.com. Additionally, updates from Stillwater can be found by following @WVUCrossCountry on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. A live blog can be followed on the National Results Wall at USTFCCCA.org.
“On paper, it looks like Iowa State and Oklahoma State are the favorites for the title,” said Cleary. “There is a blanket thrown over a few of us for the next places. Of course, the great thing about our sport is that one race, and one race only, will determine who the best team is.”
In WVU’s cross country history, it has won two conference titles. In 2007, the Mountaineers were named Big East Champions, and in 1994 they won the Atlantic 10 crown. In 2000, Megan Metcalfe earned Big East Freshman of the Year accolades, while in 1994, Charity Wachera was named the Atlantic 10 Freshman of the Yeah and Heather Bury earned the award in 1993.
The Mountaineers have won a title from each conference they’ve been in and are looking to achieve the Big 12 crown on Saturday.
After Saturday’s race, the league champions for both the men and women will be crowned. Individuals who finish in the top 15 will earn Big 12 All-Conference honors, and the top newcomer in each race will be recognized with the Newcomer of the Year award.
The Mountaineers placed second at the 2014 Big 12 Championship, the second straight year they finished second in the conference. WVU had five top-20 finishers last season and three earned All-Big 12 honors.
Maggie Drazba finished eighth overall, earning Big 12 All-Conference honors, and Brynn Harshbarger finished 16th. The duo, now sophomores, will return to action on Saturday, along with eight other Mountaineers.
Three Big 12 women’s teams are ranked or receiving votes in the USTFCCCA National Top 30 Coaches’ Poll. Iowa State sits at No. 11, Oklahoma State is 23rd and Baylor is receiving votes.
The Mountaineers finished their regular season with a first-place finish in the women’s B race at the Greater Louisville Classic and a third place finish at the PSU Spiked Show Invitational. The team finished 27th at the Wisconsin Invitational.
“Our girls were frustrated after Wisconsin but were emerged from that race with a perfect mindset,” said Cleary. “We have trained hard the last few weeks, harder than any phase of training all year.”
Up next for the Mountaineers is the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional, in Princeton, N.J., on Friday, Nov. 13.
Coach Pat Kirkland | April 15
Wednesday, April 15
Jack Bicknell Jr. | Aug. 7
Thursday, August 07
Sean Cleary/Ceili McCabe | Nov. 19
Tuesday, November 19
XC: Ceili McCabe Big 12 Championship Post-Race Interview
Friday, November 01
