Meet 6: Kennesaw State at NCAA Cross Country South Region Championships
Date: Friday, November 11, at 8:30 a.m. ET (women) 9:30 a.m. (Men)
Location: Apalachee Regional Park  | Tallahassee, Fla.
Links: Live Results | NCAA South Regional Central | USTFCCCA Coaches Association National Results Wall
Social Media: Twitter | Facebook
 
Race Preview
Eight members of the Kennesaw State Cross Country teams  will head to Tallahassee, Florida to run in the NCAA Cross Country South Regionals at the Apalachee Regional Park on Friday, November 11.
 
The women will run a 6-kilometer race beginning at 8:30a.m. ET, and the men will run a 10-kilometer race beginning at 9:30a.m. ET. A total of 32 men's with individuals from four more teams and 36 women's teams along with individuals from seven schools are slated to compete in this year's South Region Championships. The top two teams in each race will automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships, while the remaining teams wait for the announcement of the at-large selections made by the NCAA Division I Cross Country Subcommittee. Additionally, a total of 38 individuals not on an advancing team will also move on to the national meet for each gender, with 36 of those automatically qualifying by being one of the top four finishers in the region not on an advancing team, while two others will be at-large selections.
 
Paul Schupp and Jordan Hand will represent the Kennesaw State men in the competition. Schupp has been the Owls top finisher in all five meets this season including four top-20 finishes. He finished 19th in the 8k at the ASUN Cross Country Championships in 26:00.71. Hand was one of two returners off last year's squad. The Snellville, Georgia native competed in all five meets this season, ran his lifetime-best time in the 8K of 26:31.64 at the USC Upstate Invitational. He would finish 33^rd with a time of 26:58.13 at the ASUN Championships.
 
Kidan Kidane, Lexi Froh, Saidah Grant, Bonnie McKinnon, Caitlyn Farrell, and Kaitlin Franklin will represent the Owls in the women's 6k race. Kidane was the Owls top finisher in 14 straight meets dating back to 2014. She won the 5K at the Upstate Invitational in 17:39.63. She ran her career-best time in the 5K of 17:07.72 in the ASUN Championships where she finished second overall and earned Atlantic Sun First Team All-Conference Honors. Grant is a junior who posted her season- best time of 19:15.09 at the ASUN Championships. Farrell a sophomore, along with the freshman trio of Froh, Franklin, and McKinnon all improved as the season went along helping the Owls to a fourth-place finish at the ASUN Championships.  
  
Owls Record Solid Performances at ASUN Championships
The Kennesaw State women's and men's cross country teams competed at the ASUN Conference Championships at the Milliken Research Park on the campus of South Carolina Upstate on Saturday, October 29.The men's finished fifth while the women earned a fourth-place finish.
 
2016 NCAA South Regional Fields
NCAA SOUTH REGION WOMEN'S FIELD
Teams (32)
Alabama State , Alabama, Belmont, Chattanooga, ETSU, FIU, Florida Atlantic, Florida State, Florida, Georgia Southern ,Georgia State ,  Georgia Tech, Georgia, Jacksonville, Kennesaw State, Lipscomb, Memphis , Mercer, Miami, Mississippi State, Mississippi, North Florida , Samford, South Alabama, South- Florida, Southern Miss, Tennessee Tech, Tennessee-Martin, Tennessee, UAB, UCF, Vanderbilt
 
Incomplete Teams (4 schools/11 athletes)
Auburn , Florida Gulf Coast, Middle Tennessee , Stetson
 
 
NCAA SOUTH REGION MEN'S FIELD
Teams (24)
Alabama, Belmont, Chattanooga, East Tennessee, FIU, Florida Atlantic, Florida Gulf Coast, Florida State, Florida, Georgia Tech, Georgia, Lipscomb, Miami, Middle Tennessee State, Mississippi State, Mississippi, North Florida, Samford, South Alabama, South Florida, Tennessee Tech, Tennessee, Troy, Vanderbilt
 
Incomplete Teams (7 schools/14 athletes)
Auburn, Austin Peay, Jacksonville, Kennesaw State, Mercer, Stetson
Tennessee-Martin
 
Next Up
The Owls will transition and begin preparing for the indoor track season which begins on Friday, January 13^th at the ETSU Invitational.
 
 To keep up with the latest Kennesaw State cross country news, follow the team on Twitter@KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlTrackFieldXC or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook.