The University of New Mexico cross country team traveled to Wisconsin just two weeks ago, but will make a return trip to compete again in Madison at the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals on Friday.
Lobo cross country should gain some valuable experience by seeing the course a second time already this season, and it may lead to an advantage as Wisconsin hosts the 2018 Cross Country Championships later this season.
Zimmer Championship Course was kind the first time around to the New Mexico women, who placed three runners in the top-10 en route to a third-place finish overall. Sophomore runner Weini Kelati was the top finisher for the Lobos and was rewarded with Mountain West Athlete of the Week recognition for her efforts.
It was Kelati's first conference athlete of the week award, which she said felt "really great."
"I feel like I'm on the right track for what I want to do," Kelati said.
Although Kelati said she was excited and wants to perform well individually, she will be looking forward to running whatever way puts her team in the best possible situation. She said she believed Saturday would be a different race with new challenges, but is ready for whatever comes her way.
A release said there is expected to be 12 women competing for UNM — Natasha Bernal, Johanna Briscoe, Adva Cohen, Sophie Eckel, Juanita Johnson, Kelati, Kendall Kelly, Ednah Kurgat, Alondra Negron, Hannah Nuttall, Charlotte Prouse and Catrina Thomas.
New Mexico enters Saturday’s meet as the No. 3 team in the nation and the top-ranked school in its draw, but will still face plenty of top-notch competition, including the host-school Wisconsin Badgers — who walked away with the top finish on the women's side two weeks ago.
There are eight other top-25 schools slated to join the Lobos on the course — No. 5 Stanford, No. 8 Wisconsin, No. 10 Michigan, No. 12 Furman, No. 16 Washington, No 20 Utah State, No. 22 Notre Dame and No. 24 Yale.
The field will be broken down into two separate races on the men’s and women’s sides to accommodate the large number of participants, one being the "white" draw and the other labeled the "cardinal," which are Wisconsin's school colors as well as a third "gray" draw, which appears to be an open run.
UNM’s men squad finished in 26th place at the Nuttycombe Invitational as couple of weeks ago and will face a solid field as well in their attempt to see how much progress they have made since then. Some notable schools in the 71-team entry include No. 2 BYU, No. 4 Portland, No. 8 Syracuse, No. 9 Purdue, No. 10 Air Force, No. 12 Washington, No. 17 Washington State, No. 21 Indiana and No. 25 UCLA as well as regional opponents Colorado State, Nevada and Utah State.
The men’s squad is projected to trot out Toby Cooke, Ian Crowe-Wright, Reece Donihi, Jared Garcia, Jonny Glen, Iolo Huges and Michael Wilson.
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The first women's 6k is slated for a 9 a.m. start time, though the Lobos will run in the second draw with begins at 9:45 a.m., while the UNM men will also compete in the second leg known as the "white" draw and will take the course for their 8k run at 11:15 a.m.
The next Lobo cross country event will be held Oct. 20 in La Jolla, California as they compete in the Triton Classic Cross Country Invitational.
Mark Jacobson is a freelance sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers men’s and women’s golf, but also contributes content for various other sports. He can be contacted at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @aztwoabq.
Robert Maler is the sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers basketball and baseball and contributes content for various other sports as well. He can be contacted at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @Robert_Maler.
