Perennially unpredictable factors until the NCAA XC Championships arrive will be race day weather and course conditions. (MIKE SCOTT)
WHEN ASSESSING NCAA XC possibilities in September, hard data is relatively scarce. Evidence in the form of major meet results doesn’t arrive in volume until late October. Individual stars and full-strength squads more often than not race infrequently before then, and after that it’s off to the races over a 3-week stretch that begins with Conferences the last weekend of October.
For the first time in meet history, Missouri will host the Nationals, which will be run on November 22 over 6K for the women and 10K for the men. The Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia, opened in ’19, is a spectator-friendly rolling route on grass. It is comprised of a pair of linked loops (2K and 3K) with 550m from the start line to its “first sweeping turn,” as described by Mizzou Athletics. And the finish? “Last 1800m of 3K loop with sweeping, graded turns… Finish straightaway of 300m is slightly uphill with elevated viewing berm.” Columbia temperatures on nationals race day ’24 were in the mid-to-high 30s.
Follow the links to the 4 detailed sections of our Div. I-based NCAA XC Preview:
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