Michigan
NCAA Great Lakes Regional
Nationals Berth on the Line for Michigan Men at Great Lakes Regional
11/10/2021 1:43:00 PM | Men's Cross Country
THIS WEEK
Friday, Nov. 12 -- at NCAA Great Lakes Regional (Evansville, Ind.), Noon CST
TV: B1G+ | Live Results | Live Video
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The national No. 12-ranked University of Michigan men's cross country team will be aiming for a return to the national championships as it begins its NCAA postseason journey this Friday (Nov. 12) at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional in Evansville, Ind.
Over the course of 10 kilometers (6.21 miles) on the grounds of the Angel Mounds Historic Site beginning at noon CST, the Big Ten runner-up Wolverines will vie for qualification to next Saturday's NCAA Championships after being shut out of the rescheduled 2020 edition of the meet that was held this past March.
This will mark the first 10K race of the season after previous frequent eight-kilometer (five-mile) events for the Wolverines, who will be represented in Evansville by seven runners among the group of All-Big Ten honorees Devin Meyrer and Tom Dodd; Tom Brady; Zach Stewart; Joost Plaetinck; Nick Foster; Colton Yesney; Christian Hubaker; Oli Raimond; and James Gedris.
That group is coming off a runner-up finish at the Big Ten Championships in which six runners finished top-25 individually and the Wolverines' top five runners all finished within 13.3 seconds of one another.
Michigan's lineup will be challenging for one of the region's two automatic berths to the NCAA Championships, which will be another 10K race hosted by Florida State eight days after the regional meet.
The field of teams battling for those two spots is impressive. Michigan is ranked third in the Great Lakes Region per the latest listings from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, behind only ACC champion No. 6 Notre Dame and Big Ten winner No. 9 Wisconsin.
The Wolverines also will have to contend with regional fourth-ranked Big East champion No. 28 Butler; fifth- and sixth-ranked Big Ten foes Indiana and Michigan State; and seventh-ranked MAC champion Eastern Michigan, among others.
Only the top-two teams in the standings are guaranteed to advance to nationals; teams finishing third or lower will be at the mercy of the at-large qualification process that takes into account regional finish and head-to-head victories over other NCAA-qualifying teams.
Michigan is in good position with head-to-head victories after a robust regular season. In addition to a win over No. 23 Minnesota at Big Tens last month, the Wolverines own wins over West Region second-ranked No. 13 Washington, Southeast Region favorite No. 17 Furman, No. 20 Boise State, No. 21 Utah State, No. 22 Colorado State, Northeast Region favorite No. 23 Syracuse, No. 26 Southern Utah and No. 30 Portland. They also have wins over vote-receiving North Carolina, NC State and Duke.
Live results will be available through Primetime Timing. Updates will be posted throughout the race on the official @umichtrack social media channels.
Course Description
Angel Mounds State Historic Site
Course Maps | Course Preview Video
Distance: 10 kilometers (6.21 miles)
Max Elevation: 383 feet above sea level
Low Elevation: 368 feet above sea level
The course is situated on the grounds of the Angel Mounds State Historic site, which in the early 11th century through the 15th century was a significant population center for the Mississippian culture of Native Americans, according to Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites. The site features the excavated remnants of earthen mounds that once supported human-built structures, and some of these mounds are among the largest prehistoric structures in the eastern United States, per the Central States Archaeological Journal.
With no more than 17 feet of elevation change between the course's lowest and highest points, this is the flattest course on which the Wolverines have or will run this fall. Rain is expected in the days leading up to the regional, potentially making for softer and muddier conditions -- though likely not as extreme as those faced last month at Big Tens.
Distances selected to match with intermediate checkpoints in live results
1st Kilometer: The course starts out straight on a downhill for nearly one-third of a mile to the course's lowest point, before a slight uphill that leads into the course's biggest climb after a gentle curve into a near half-mile straightaway that extends into the second kilometer.
2nd Kilometer: Tame by comparison to other courses on which the Wolverines have run this year, the biggest climb at Angel Mounds is an 11-foot ascent over about 200 meters that gives way to gently rolling hills as the course takes a short turn back toward the starting line and the beginning of the second of four loops.
3rd Kilometer: Almost identical to the 1st kilometer.
4th Kilometer: Runners will tackle the biggest ascent of the course that gives way to a gentle, rolling descent for much of this split.
5th Kilometer: This kilometer is mostly gently rolling with an acute 10-foot climb and descent on the outskirts of the site's largest prehistoric mound and another small climb during the quarter-mile approach to the beginning of the third lap.
6th Kilometer: Almost identical to 1st and 3rd kilometers.
7th Kilometer: Almost identical to 2nd kilometer.
8th Kilometer: Almost identical to 1st, 3rd and 6th kilometers.
9th Kilometer: Almost identical to the 4th kilometer.
10th Kilometer: Almost identical to the 5th kilometer, with a slight veer off to the right to the finish on the final straightaway.
Players Mentioned
