Rotich, Bartels Look to Continue Cross Country's Success at NCAA South Central Regional

2017 NCAA Division I Cross Country South Central Regional Championships
When:	Friday, Nov. 10 W (6k): 9:15 a.m. // M (10k): 10:15 a.m.
Where:	Watts Cross Country Course \| College Station, Texas
Live Results:	Roll Wave!
Course Maps:	Women's // Men's
Twitter:	@GreenWaveXCTF
Facebook:	@GreenWaveXCTF

NEW ORLEANS -- Tulane cross country continues its postseason running Friday morning at Watts Cross Country Course in College Station, Texas when it competes at the 2017 NCAA South Central Regional Championships. The women's 6k begins at 9:15 a.m., while the men's 10k starts at 10:15 a.m.

"I feel good about the way the team's been training," director of cross country and track & field Eric Peterson said. "I think we bounced back from the conference championships with some good workouts and a positive perspective going into regionals."

Two weekends ago, junior Emmanuel Rotich took first place in the men's 8k race at the 2017 American Athletic Conference Championships in Philadelphia. Rotich finished in 24:58.6, nearly eight seconds ahead of the second-place finisher, to claim his first conference championship. The men's team recorded a seventh-place finish, while, on the women's side, senior Lauren Bartels took fifth (21:54.1) to earn a personal-best finish at The American Championships and led the Green Wave women to a fifth-place finish, their top team finish since joining the conference.

"My hope is that the men's team can improve upon its success and place among the top-12 in the region," Peterson said. "From an individual standpoint, Emmanuel has had a great season up to this point in time, and I hope he continues to do so. The main purpose for this race in his mind is to qualify and advance to the national championships. That's the very singular goal he's focused on."

Last season at the regional championships, Rotich put on a performance for the ages in the 10k, breaking a school record with his gold medal-winning time of 29:58.9 to qualify for the national championships and lead Tulane's men's team to an 11th place finish, its highest regional finish since the 2001 season. The Green Wave women raced to a ninth-place overall finish - the highest finish at a regional meet since the 1990s - as then-juniors Emma Newton and Bartels led in the 6K, placing 28th and 31st, respectively.

"The women had a good race at the conference championships as a team," Peterson said. "It was really about as well as they've run all season long, and we're hoping to see them build on that. I think they can duplicate that performance in the regionals and place in the top six. It'll be dependent on how our leaders - Lauren and Emma - at the front of the team compete. They certainly have the capability to finish in the top-25 and earn all-region runner honors."

The top two teams and the first four finishers in the race not associated with those two teams will advance to the NCAA Championships, held Nov. 18 in Louisville, Ky.

Fans can follow along for live results, updates and news on Twitter (@GreenWaveXCTF) or find the team on Facebook. Follow Tulane Athletics on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and @TulaneAthletics on Snapchat.

Rotich, Bartels Look to Continue Cross Country's Success at NCAA South Central Regional

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Players Mentioned

Lauren Bartels

Emma Newton

Emmanuel Rotich

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