Tallahassee, Fla.—Auburn sophomore Joyce Kimeli qualified for the NCAA Cross Country Championships after finishing fourth at South Region Friday at the Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee, Fla. Kimeli finished the women's 6k course in 20:33.1, to advance to her first NCAA Championships.
The Auburn women have now had an individual NCAA qualifier in each of the last four years. Senior Brenda Kigen qualified in 2015 and '17, with former Tiger Veronica Eder advancing in 2016.
Kimeli will run at the 2018 NCAA Championships on Saturday, Nov. 17 at 10:45 a.m. CT at the Thomas Zimmerman Championship Course in Madison, Wis.
A Eldoret, Kenya, native, Kimeli ran with the lead pack the entire race, leading the race briefly at the 5k mark before crossing in fourth in warm, humid conditions. It was her second-consecutive top 10 finish after claiming fifth at the SEC Championships two weeks ago.
On the men's side, freshman Silas Kipngetich earned All-South Region honors with an 11th-place finish. The fellow Eldoret, Kenya, native was as high as sixth early in the race and 21st halfway through before making up 10 places and crossing the finish line in 31:45.2.
Four of the Auburn women's scorers were underclassmen. Sophomore Mercy Kiprop was the Tigers' second finisher, crossing in 74th place (22:19.3), while junior Cassie Bebout was 83rd (22:28.5). Sophomores Louisa McPherson (22:42.7) and Frances Patrick (23:02.6) were 97th and 115th, respectively, to round out the AU scoring.
Sophomore Tommy McDonough ran a solid race on the men's side as the Tigers' second finisher in 32:43.4 to claim 45th. Auburn native Jack Rogers was 113th (34:37.1), while junior Andy Smith was 134th (35:32.8). Junior Alex Tucker rounded out the Auburn scoring with a 134th place finish (35:52.4).
Auburn finished 12th in the women's team standings, while the men were 18th.
NCAA SOUTH REGION
Nov. 9, 2018
Apalachee Regional Park
Tallahassee, Fla.
MEN'S TEAM STANDINGS
1. Ole Miss, 45
2. Florida State, 92
3. Tennessee, 108
4. Belmont, 139
5. Georgia Tech, 161
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18. Auburn , 408
AUBURN MEN'S RESULTS
11. Silas Kipngetich, 31:45.2
45. Tommy McDonough, 32:43.4
113. Jack Rogers, 34:37.1
127. Andy Smith, 35:32.8
134. Alex Tucker, 35:52.4
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146. Ryan Lee, 36:45.6
INDIVIDUAL MEN'S TOP 10
1. Alfred Chelanga (UA), 30:59.2
2. Zach Long (UT), 31:11.5
3. Farah Abdulkarim (UM), 31:18.6
4. Jacob McLeod (BU), 31:20.2
5. Ben Varghese (ETSU), 31:20.2
6. Waleed Suliman (UM), 31:22.0
7. Kaleb McLeod (BU) , 31:25.1
8. Mark Robertson (UM), 31:30.9
9. Caleb Pottorff (FSU) , 31:32.0
10.Nathan Jubra (UNF), 31:35.5
WOMEN'S TEAM STANDINGS
1. Florida State, 60
2. Florida, 64
3. Ole Miss, 87
4. Georgia Tech, 144
5. Georgia, 165
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12. Auburn, 349
AUBURN WOMEN'S RESULTS
4. Joyce Kimeli, 20:33.1
74. Mercy Kiprop, 22.19.3
83. Cassie Bebout, 22:28.5
97. Louisa McPherson, 22:42.7
115. Frances Patrick, 23:02.6
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142. Presley Weems, 23:34.6
178. Brenda Kigen, 24:32.2
INDIVIDUAL WOMEN'S TOP 10
1. Militsa Mircheva (FSU), 20:17.0
2. Jessica Pascoe (UF), 20:23.6
3. Jessica Drop (UGA), 20:29.4
4. Joyce Kimeli (AU), 20:33.1
5. Clio Ozanne-Jaques (UM), 20:34.1
6. Elisabeth Bergh (UF), 20:40.5
7. Purity Sanga (TTU), 20:43.0
8. Elizabeth Funkderburk (FSU), 20:43.4
9. Morgan Hull (UF), 20:51.7
10. Megan Murray (UT), 20:56.8
Kimeli qualifies for NCAA Championships
