University of North Florida issued the following announcement on Nov. 11.
North Florida cross country will make their way to Huntsville, Ala., this Friday to race in the NCAA South Regional meet at John Hunt Park. Both teams look to qualify for their first-ever team berths in the NCAA Championships, while Nathan Jubran has his sights set on returning to cross country's biggest stage after qualifying as an individual this past spring.
LAST TIME OUT
The men's team claimed back-to-back ASUN championships when we last saw the Osprey runners at the ESPN Wide World of Sports. Noah Perkins finished second overall as the top runner for UNF and finished with the third-best 8k time in the program's Division I history. Jubran, as well as Jake Turner, finished in the top eight spots and all seven runners for the men finished in the top 21 spots at the conference championship meet. The men will now prepare for their first 10k race of the season when they compete at regionals.
The women's team put together a seventh-place finish at the ASUN Championship on Oct. 30 in Orlando, Fla. They were able to edge out in-state rivals Stetson and Florida Gulf Coast at the meet. Mia McLain was the top Osprey runner for the women with a top-25 finish with Camryn Cooney and Raquel Lespasio not far behind as they both finished in the top 40. They raced in the only 5k competition of the season at the ASUN meet and will return to the 6k format for the NCAA South Regional meet.
MAKING STRIDES
The Ospreys look to clinch their first-ever team appearance at the NCAA XC Championships with a top-two finish at the NCAA South Regional meet. Jubran qualified as an individual for the championship meet last spring as the first-ever UNF runner to race in the NCAA final meet. He will look to bring his team along with him this time, as a top-four finish would put them in contention to be selected for the race.
The women's team has their sights set on their third top-10 finish of the season when they race this Friday. McLain and Cooney have finished as the top runners for the Ospreys for the past three meets and will lead the pack for the women at regionals. Lespasio finished as the top Osprey runner at the FSU XC Open earlier this season and looks to repeat that performance in Huntsville, Ala.
NOTABLE OPPONENTS
The men's team will compete against the top competition from the South Region that includes 10 Power Five teams in this meet.
There will also be five other ASUN teams that will make the trip to Huntsville, Ala., for the regional meet. North Florida currently ranks fourth in the South Region poll, which would put them in contention for an at-large bid for the NCAA Championships if they finished at the spot on Friday.
The women's meet will feature 11 Power Five teams, as well as six opposing ASUN schools, during their 6k meet on Friday morning. The meet will also have 10 other schools that reside within the state of Florida. The Ospreys are not ranked within the top 15 of the South Region poll but have a chance to impress against the top teams in their region.
EVENT SCHEDULE
The Ospreys starts the morning with the women's team competing in the 6k race at 9:30 am ET. The men's team will follow up afterward and start their 10k race at 10:30 am.
This will be the first time this season that the men's team will be participating in a 10k race, while the women have been running 6k races all season, with the exception of the ASUN Championship.
Original source can be found here.
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