Groundbreaking Championships Ahead for Cross Country
11/17/2015 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Nov. 17, 2015
GONZAGA BULLDOGS at the NCAA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
MEET 8 | NOV. 21 | TOM SAWYER PARK | LOUISVILLE, KY.
TIMES: Women- 9 a.m., Men- 10 a.m., (Pacific Time)
DISTANCES: Women- 6,000 meters, Men- 10,000 meters
LIVE VIDEO: GoZags.com
LIVE RESULTS: GoZags.com
LAST TIME AT MEET: First time ever as a team at the national championships
TOP INDIVIDUALS THEN: Men- Crichlow is first-ever qualifier, Women- (1996) Cheska Fairbanks (14th, 18:01)
ABOUT THE MEET:
- It is the 78th annual men's competition and the 36th annual women's competition.
- Thirty-one teams were selected to participate in each championship. The top two, seven-person teams automatically qualified from each of the nine regions, for a total of 18 teams. Thirteen teams were then selected at-large.
- Thirty-eight individuals were selected to participate in each championship through an automatic qualifier and at-large selection process. All individual qualifiers finished in the top 25 in their regions.
COURSE INFORMATION:
- In 2012, E.P. 'Tom' Sawyer State Park was the site of the closest finish for the top-three finishers in NCAA history. In the women's 6,000m race, Iowa State's Betsy Saina (19:27.9) won the race, Dartmouth's Abbey D'Agostino (19:28.7) took runner-up honors, and Oregon's Jordan Hasay (19:28.7) placed third. There was only 0.7 seconds separating the national champion from third-place finisher.
- This is the second time in NCAA history that the Division I cross country championships will take place in the state of Kentucky (last time was in 2012 in Louisville).
NEW TERRITORY ... FOR BOTH PROGRAMS:
- The Gonzaga women's cross country team and Matthew Crichlow of the GU men's team qualified for the 2015 NCAA Div. I National Championships.
- It marks the first time a Bulldog women's team has ever made the NCAA Cross Country Championships, while Crichlow becomes the first Gonzaga men's qualifier.
- Cheska Fairbanks was the last Zag to run at the national championships, finishing as an All-American in 14th in the women's race in Tucscon, Ariz., in 1996. She ran 3.16 miles in 18:01.
MOVIN ON UP:
- The Gonzaga women's cross country team continues to break new ground for its building program.
- The Zags rose to No. 27 in the final USTFCCCA ranking of the season Monday.
- Last week, the Bulldogs cracked the national poll for the first time in program history at No. 30.
A PROGRAM BEST FOR YOU, AND YOU, AND YOU:
- The Gonzaga women's and men's teams both set new program low team totals at the NCAA West Regionals.
- The women finished sixth with 224 points, while the men had 253 in 10th. The places were also program-bests.
- Shelby Mills' seventh place finish was a program-high for the last 15 years.
- Matthew Crichlow's 18th place finish was the highest GU finish in the last 20 years.
SOME OF THE BEST IN THE WEST:
- Following strong finishes at the NCAA West Regionals, Matthew Crichlow, Troy Fraley, Jessica Mildes, and Shelby Mills were all tabbed All-West Region by the USTFCCCA.
- The four Zags on the list is a record-high for Gonzaga.
WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS:
- For the first time in 20 years, and only the second time in program history, the Gonzaga University women's cross country team are the West Coast Conference Champions.
- The Zags' claimed the 2015 crown, led by a first place individual finish from Shelby Mills.
- Gonzaga finished tied with BYU with 59 points, but the Bulldogs won the tiebreaker.
CONFERENCE ACCOLADES ABOUND:
- Following their conference title, GU women's Head Coach Patty Ley was named the 2015 WCC women's Cross Country Coach of the Year. She became the first Zag to receive that honor since Kevin Swaim in 2000.
- Shelby Mills, Jessica Mildes, and Jordan Thurston were all named All-WCC with their finishes.
- Troy Fraley's ninth place finish placed him on the men's All-WCC team.
HENLING AND MILDES NAMED ACADEMIC ALL-WCC:
- Julie Henling and Jessica Mildes were named to the 2015 West Coast Conference Women's Cross Country All-Academic Team. Mildes boasts a perfect 4.00 GPA, while Henling has an impressive 3.98 GPA.
- Shelby Mills and Jordan Thurston were both named honorable mention.
Players Mentioned
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
Tuesday, June 30
Monday, June 29
Monday, June 29
Friday, June 26
