Women’s Cross Country and Cheruiyot Advance to NCAA Championships

The Gators women’s cross country team will be competing for a national championship on Saturday, Nov 22 as the women’s cross country team secured its spot in the competition after winning the South Regional last Friday.

Florida is one of five SEC schools in the running for the title, alongside LSU, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Arkansas. The conference will be represented well at the meet in Columbia, Missouri.

This marks the third season in a row that the Gators have a shot to take home a national championship. As the third-best team in the country, behind NC State and BYU, it could be the team’s best opportunity to finish the job.

Following its first-place team finish at the South Regional, the Gator women’s cross country team carries good momentum entering the NCAA Championships. The SEC champions had five runners in the top ten, all of whom earned All-Region Honors for their races.

Hilda Olemomoi, who finished fourth, led the way for Florida in the 6K in 19:14.74. Judy Chepkoech finished within 0.01 seconds of her teammate, securing a fifth-place finish. Tia Wilson, in sixth, Claire Stegall in 15th, and Beth Morley in 22nd, rounded out the scoring for the Gators, totaling only 52 points.

As for the men’s side, Kelvin Cheruiyot is continuing his impressive individual season. Running the 10K with a time of 29:09.1, he placed first in the South Regional and earned an automatic bid to this weekend’s championships.

Cheruiyot has had quite the breakthrough for the start of his collegiate career. Now unbeaten in his last three races, the individual SEC champ became the first Florida man since 2015 to earn a place at the NCAA Championship.

Saturday’s meet can be streamed on ESPN U from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m

Category: Gator Sports, Gators Cross Country, NCAA