Tulane University
NCAA South Central Regional
Cross Country Gears Up for NCAA South Central Regional
Nov 10, 2016 | Cross Country
Men's Course Map | Women's Course Map
NEW ORLEANS – After getting a first taste of the postseason at the American Athletic Conference Championships two weeks ago, the Tulane cross country teams are back in action on Friday morning to compete in the 2016 NCAA South Central Regional. The meet, hosted by the University of Arkansas, will take place at Agri Park in Fayetteville.
Both Tulane's men's and women's teams qualified to the regional meet with their efforts throughout the regular season. The women will kick things off at 11:00 a.m. with a 6K, with the men following at 12:00 p.m. in their first 10K of the season. The men will race against 26 teams from the south-central region, including No. 6 Arkansas, while the women will compete against 24 opponent teams, three of which are ranked in the top 30 nationally.
Regional meets serve as a pathway to the NCAA National Championships on Nov. 19 in Terre Haute, Indiana. The top two teams in each race will qualify for the national meet, as well as the top four runners from teams that did not qualify. In addition, the top 25 runners in each race will be eligible for All-Region honors.
On the men's side, Tulane once again looks to sophomore Emmanuel Rotich and junior Moses Aloiloi to lead the way, both in hopes of posting qualifying finishes. The pair most recently helped Tulane to its highest conference placing since 2001 with a second-place finish at conference championships two weeks ago.
Rotich, who enters the meet with six consecutive top-three placings as well as a school record in the 8K, has led the team in every meet this year, and has shown immense improvement since his freshman season. Aloiloi broke a school record in the 10K on his time of 30:19 in this race two years ago, finishing at the no. 18 spot. Though the jump from 8K to 10K races will prove a challenge for Tulane's top runners, both Rotich and Aloiloi have a shot at qualifying for nationals with a strong performance.
The women will look to juniors Emma Newton and Lauren Bartels, who have also led the Green Wave in nearly every race this year. Last month, the pair helped Tulane to the team's highest-ever finish at the American Athletic Conference Championships.
"We were 11th in this meet a year ago, and throughout this season, we've been a little bit better than we were at each meet last year," associate head cross country coach Michael Nussa said. "We'll be happy with a top-ten performance in this meet, and anything beyond that would be a really good bonus. It would be a great step forward for both Emma and Lauren personally as well as for the team if they were able to place in the top 25 to earn All-Region honors this weekend."
Live results from both races can be found here.
For the latest updates on both Tulane cross country teams, fans can follow along on Twitter (@GreenWaveXCTF) or find the team on Facebook.
Players Mentioned
