Men's cross country set for their first-ever NCAA Championship meet
Senior-heavy squad hopes for top eight finish in Evansville
Justin Wollard, Media Relations Director
11/20/2009 4:56:55 PM
EVANSVILLE, Ind. -- For the first time in school history, an SBU cross country team will compete on the national stage. Saturday, the SBU men will run at the 2009 NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships at the University of Southern Indiana. The senior-dominated and 12th-ranked Bearcats look to wrap up their successful SBU cross country careers with a big finish at the national meet, which begins at 1 p.m.
Senior Michael Pierce qualified for the 2007 NCAA Championships in 2007, joining former SBU runner T. Jay Sanderson as the only individuals from SBU ever to qualify for nationals. Pierce earned All-American honors at the 2007 meet at Missouri Southern in Joplin, but missed last year due to injury. He was back strong this season, winning the MIAA individual championship and finishing second at regionals behind Abilene Christian All-American Amos Sang.
Other seniors that lead the Bearcats include Jeremy Glassmaker, Shawn Etzenhouser, Michael McCampbell and Cameron Ayers, along with sophomore Will Hansen and freshman Phillip Miller. The group of seniors have been at SBU for all four seasons, three of those under coach Corey McElhaney. McElhaney has seen first hand their growth. "They're a fun group to coach. They are humble guys with great character who go out every day and work hard. This is the best team SBU has ever had, hands down."
McElhaney is excited about the trip, but wishes the time between regionals and nationals was quicker. "It's kind of hard to keep focused with the two week break," he said. "But at our last full workout on Tuesday, our guys were clicking on all cylinders. Our goal is to go there, do well and finish in the top eight."
Last season, the Bearcats won the MIAA championship and just missed out on a trip to nationals. This year, SBU finished third at the MIAA meet behind Missouri Southern and Pittsburg State. At the NCAA regional two weeks ago in Abilene, Texas, MSSU took first with the Bearcats and Gorillas switching spots. McElhaney believes the tough competition from the league has prepared the Bearcats for the national meet. "We ran at a meet with at least one of the top conference teams every week. It really helped keep our focus."
The top forty individuals in Saturday's NCAA Championships earn All-American honors while the top four teams receive recognition. The women's race begins at noon from the USI Cross Country Course with the men's race following at 1 p.m.