Men’s XC wraps up the season on a high note

Early in the fall season, MSU’s men’s cross-country team began working towards a collective goal: competing in the 2023 Division 1 NCAA Cross Country Championships. 

With hard work and consistently low scores throughout the season, the men’s team got the news they were all waiting for. On Nov. 11, they received an at-large bid and secured a team slot at nationals based on seasonal performance.

The day before, the team finished fifth at the NCAA Mountain Regional race in Lubbock, Texas, beating out their biggest opponent, Colorado State University, ranked No.23 in the nation on performance scores and having all five runners score in the top 50. 

This race helped them earn their position as they hit the ground running at Panorama Farms in Earlysville, Virginia on Nov. 18. 

With an allotted two-and-a-half hours of airtime on ESPNU and over 300 teams in Division 1 Cross Country having vied for a ticket to nationals, the championships showcased the best of the best as 31 men's and 31 women’s teams — each consisting of seven racers — competed for the team and individual title of national champions. However, only five runners out of seven score in any given race will contribute to the team's total. The final placement of each runner at the race’s end represents the number of points allotted to a team. Thus, the team with the lowest total emerges victorious.

In the pre-national coaches poll, the ‘Cats entered this year's championship ranked No. 29 by the U.S Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. This is the Bobcats’ third NCAA championship appearance in program history, having competed back in 2022 and 2002, according to MSU Athletics. 

Teams to look out for this year included defending national champion Northern Arizona University as well as Oklahoma State University, Brigham Young University, Stanford University, Wake Forest University, University of Virginia (UVA) and North Carolina State University.

When the ‘Cats competed at last year's championships in Stillwater, Oklahoma — after 20 years without a bid — the team placed 25th overall. However, the team managed to one-up themselves this year after last year's placement left a sour taste in Weese's and his team’s mouths, according to the MSU Athletics page. 

On Nov. 18, the team’s strenuous training paid off and landed them a 13th-place finish. This feat marks the lowest point total at a national cross-country meet in school history, according to the MSU Athletics page.

The ‘Cats improved immensely this year with 392 total points — an astounding 207 points lower than last year's 599-point finish. This year, three runners, Matthew Richtman (26th), Ben Perrin (53rd) and Own Smith (72nd), placed in the top 75.

This race was monumental for Richtman, who became the team’s fourth-best finisher at nationals in MSU history and only the second runner since the team’s inception to be named a two-time All-American alongside Shannon Butler (1989, 1990), according to the MSU Athletics page. 

"Building a team like we have is something way more special than just being given a national berth every year, and it's incredibly special to be a part of that and watch it grow,” Richtman said in an interview with MSU Athletics on Nov. 18.

Those who watched the race saw an impressive emergence of talent, both old and new. The number of fans lining the carved course on the 840-acre farm in Earlysville, Virginia was unprecedented given the sport doesn’t gain the traction or revenue that popular sports such as football or volleyball do, according to Theo Kahler’sarticle published in Runner’s World on Nov. 21.

Tickets to the championship this year sold out, and the property — which has been hosting small-scale events since 1999 — had to prepare for more than 6,000 eager fans to fill the farm. The event brought in 6,723 people, including the athletes. That’s more than double the amount from last year's meet in Stillwater, Oklahoma, according to Kahler.

Senior UVA marketing student Laura Johnson was one of many who found herself on the sidelines as a spectator during the championship race. “There was a lot of energy throughout the course and on that farm. Watching everyone come together to cheer on runners in this extremely hard sport was incredible. It’s not an easy feat for anyone.” 

Johnson said that regardless of the standings, there was excellence on the course that day  “in every aspect of the race — courage, strength, passion and grit.” 

The team’s collective goal to compete annually in the national championships will always be a driving force. “We are hoping to reach even higher levels,” Weese said in an interview with MSU Athletics on Nov. 18. Year after year, the team manages to do just that as their trajectory continues to turn heads. 

You can find more race results at www.watchathletics.com.