NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Vanderbilt men’s and women’s cross country teams will head to Terre Haute, Indiana, this weekend for the annual Pre-Nationals meet at Indiana State.
“Coach Smeltzer and I are excited for the meet this weekend,” said head coach Steve Keith. “I know the teams are looking forward to the large competitive fields and chance to run on a championship level course. The men have quite a bit of momentum coming off of a very solid performance at Louisville. Another good effort in Terre Haute will set them up well for SEC. And this is a great opportunity for the women to test themselves in another national level meet. We grouped well a few weeks ago at Ohio State and this will be even more important in the much larger race this weekend.”
Weekend Notables
- Vanderbilt will bring 17 women and eight men to Indiana.
- Saturday’s races will feature 57 men’s teams (602 athletes) and 64 women’s teams (659 athletes). The packed field is full of nationally-ranked competition.
- Joining the Commodores at the home of the national championships are nationally-ranked BYU (2), Colorado (3), Washington (4), Ole Miss (8), Oklahoma State (14), Indiana (15), Iona (21), Eastern Kentucky (25), Arkansas (27), Virginia Tech (29) and Florida State (30) on the men’s side. BYU (2), Colorado (3), Michigan (7), Washington (8), Boise State (11), Florida State (11), Ole Miss (17), Illinois (20), Boston College (26) and Oklahoma State (30) on the women’s side.
- Vanderbilt is coming off a pair of top-25 team finishes at the Live In Lou Cross Country Classic on Oct. 5. Nick Laning’s 24:04.6 was good for 15th among individuals in the men’s gold 8k race as the Commodores finished 11th, while Annie Gallagher (18:08.4) paced the Vanderbilt women’s 22nd-place finish.
- Saturday’s Pre-Nationals meet will be the final race before postseason begins with the SEC Championships in Lexington, Kentucky, on Nov. 1. The NCAA South Regionals are slated for Nov. 15 in Tallahassee, Florida, followed by the NCAA Championships in Terre Haute on Nov. 23.
Race Times
- 10 a.m. CT – Women’s 6K Blue Race
- 10:35 a.m. CT – Men’s 8K Blue Race
- 11:15 a.m. CT – Women’s 6K White Race
- 12:50 a.m. CT – Men’s 8K White Race
- 12:30 p.m. CT – Women’s 6K Open Race
- 1:05 p.m. CT – Men’s 8K Open Race
