Michigan
NCAA Great Lakes Regional
Michigan Men Ready for Big Ten Rematch at Regionals
11/12/2019 3:28:00 PM | Men's Cross Country
» The national No. 16 Michigan men will square off with rivals and frequent 2019 opponents Wisconsin, Indiana and Purdue at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional on Friday, this time with berths to nationals on the line
» All-Big Ten honorees Devin Meyrer and Jack Aho will lead the Wolverines in their pursuit of one of the two automatic bids into the NCAA Championships.
THIS WEEK
Friday, Nov. 15 -- at NCAA Great Lakes Regional (Madison, Wis.), 12:30 p.m. CST
TV: FloTrack | Live Results | Live Stream
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Less than two weeks removed from a hard-fought third-place finish at the Big Ten Championships, the national No. 16-ranked University of Michigan men's cross country team will get another shot at the same teams -- plus a few more contenders -- at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional on Friday (Nov. 15) with berths to the national championships on the line.
The Michigan men will go another round with Big Ten champion No. 9 Wisconsin, No. 13 Indiana and No. 17 Purdue -- all of whom finished within 26 points of one another at Big Tens -- on the Badgers' home course in Madison, with the likes of ACC runner-up No. 19 Notre Dame also in the mix.
Those squads and more will be battling in the first 10-kilometer (6.21-mile) race of the year at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Course for just two automatic qualifying bids to the NCAA Championships to be held next Saturday (Nov. 23) in Terre Haute, Indiana.
Racing will kick off for the men at 12:30 p.m. CST after the conclusion of the preceding women's race at 11:30 a.m. CST.
Michigan's road to one of the two automatic berths will be a difficult one, as the Great Lakes Region is among the two regions nationally with five teams ranked top-20 in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Associatiom (USTFCCCA) National Coaches' Poll.
Michigan last won the regional title in 2015, its second in three years at the time, and has finished top-three in seven of the past eight seasons.
Leading Michigan and its deep roster will be its two Second-Team All-Big Ten honorees in Devin Meyrer and Jack Aho. Among those who could fill out Michigan's seven-man lineup are Jacob Branch, Nick Foster, Isaac Harding, Jordy Hewitt, Ben Hill, Jacob Lee, Gabe Mudel and Joost Plaetinck.
The Wolverines were the only team at the Big Ten Championships to put six runners inside the top 25. At the Great Lakes Regional, the top 25 individual finishers will be deemed All-Region by the USTFCCCA.
Fans can attend in-person, but should know that no on-site parking is available. A shuttle from the nearby Blackhawk Church (9620 Brader Way, Middleton, WI 53562) is available from 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. CST for a $5 round-trip fee.
The race will also be streamed online via FloTrack's subscription platform, with live results available for free via Primetime Timing.
The official Michigan track and field / cross country social media accounts will also be providing updates and behind-the-scenes content throughout the day.
The NCAA Championships Qualifying Process
If Michigan finishes first or second in the team race, it automatically will be put through to the NCAA Championships. Each of the nine regions around the country are allotted two automatic bids, accounting for 18 of the NCAA field's 31 entrants. The remaining 13 slots are filled on an at-large basis based on a combination of regular-season performance and finishing place at this weekend's regional meets.
Should the Wolverines not finish top-two in the region -- a possibility, as they enter ranked third in the latest USTFCCCA Regional Rankings -- they will be left to the NCAA Championships at-large qualifying process to secure their third-straight trip to NCAAs and their eighth in the past nine seasons.
Given the depth of the region and the number of impressive head-to-head wins the Wolverines have from the regular season, the squad will be in a strong position for an at-large bid should they finish just outside the top-two.
An official announcement of the at-large selections and the entire championships field will be made Saturday (Nov. 16) at 5 p.m. on NCAA.com.
Wolverine Bites
• This will be the fourth time since the beginning of October the Wolverines will have raced against Wisconsin, Indiana and Purdue. They previously squared off at Notre Dame, Wisconsin and Big Tens. Notre Dame was in the field for the first two races.
• Meyrer has become the rock of the Wolverine lineup, having led the squad in each of its three races since the beginning of October. His most recent outing -- a ninth-place effort at Big Tens -- showed his late-race chops. Though he was ninth overall, his closing one-kilometer split was the fifth-fastest of anyone in the field.
• Aho had his best race of the year at the right time as he finished 14th at Big Tens for his first All-Big Ten honor. It is a big step toward rounding back into the same form that saw him earn All-America honors at last year's NCAA Championships, which took place on this same Zimmer Championship Course.
• Harding had his best race of the season, as well, as he just missed all-conference honors in a 16th-place effort. It was his best cross country performance since last year's regional meet, where he finished 11th overall for All-Region honors. A similar performance on Friday would be a big boost for Michigan.
• Plaetinck validated his breakthrough regular season with another improvement at Big Tens, coming through as Michigan's No. 4 runner to contribute to the team score. Like Meyrer, he was strong late, running the field's eighth-fastest closing kilometer despite finishing 17th.
• Veterans Hewitt, Hill and Lee all provided strong depth for the Wolverines with 22nd-, 25th- and 26th-places finishes at Big Tens, respectively. Similar performances or steps forward for each of them at regionals would only bolster the Wolverines' depth.
A Look Ahead
Saturday, Nov. 23 -- at NCAA Championships (Terre Haute, Ind.)
Players Mentioned
