Today will mark the end of the men's and women's cross country season, as they compete in the NCAA Championships in Terre Haute, Ind. The men will begin action at 11 a.m. with the 10K race, and the women will start at 12:15 p.m. with the 6K.
The men head into the championships ranked No. 1 after their first place finish at the Great Lakes Regional in Bloomington, Ind. on Nov. 12. They were lead by senior Bobby Lockhart, whose time of 31:15.8 in the 10K was good enough for sixth place. The Badgers placed three more runners in the top 10, with junior Chris Solinsky and seniors Anthony Ford and Simon Bairu finishing in eighth, ninth and 10th respectively.
For three straight years, UW has finished second place. Wisconsin put together a score of 107 in 2002, but fell to Stanford's 47. Stanford won again the following year, beating out the Badgers' score of 174. Last year, Stanford fell from first place, but Colorado still beat out Wisconsin's score of 94.
Though the Badger men have not won the NCAA title since 1988, they did win the individual title in 2004. Bairu's time of 30:38 made him the third Badger, after Walter Mehl in 1939 and Tim Hacker in 1985, to win the individual championship.
The Badgers' main competition, other than No. 3 Colorado and No. 6 Stanford, seems to come from No. 2 Arkansas. Though they are ranked behind the Badgers going into the meet at Terre Haute, they passed UW twice this season before Wisconsin reclaimed the top slot.
With a third place finish at the Great Lakes, the Wisconsin women claimed an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships. The win also vaulted them to No. 21 in the rankings, the highest position for the team all season.
With a time of 21:37.3, junior Katrina Rundhaug placed 12th and was selected for the All-Great Lakes Region Team. Senior Maggie Grabow also earned all-region honors with her 21st place finish.
Rundhaug's dominance at the Great Lakes is consistent with her dominance throughout the season. In every race she has run this year, she has led the Badger team. In the 2004 NCAA Championships, Rundhaug's time of 21:31.1 earned her 59th place overall.
Last year, Colorado was also victorious for the women, with Providence's Kim Smith winning the individual title.
