AUBURN, Ala. - Auburn cross country is back in action this week as they head to Madison, Wisconsin to compete in the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals on Saturday, Oct. 19. The Tigers will run at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course with the men running the 8k “A” race at 10:40 a.m. CT and the women running the 6k “B” race at 12:40 p.m. CT.
“This is a meet that we’ve circled on our calendar as a place that we want to test ourselves and see where we’re at,” Auburn cross country coach Aaron Kindt said. “This is the last meet of the regular season. It’s a great opportunity to see some nationally-ranked teams and build our resume.”
The men will have ten athletes lined up against SEC rivals No. 3 Arkansas, Ole Miss and Texas as well No. 9 Stanford, No. 14 Michigan, No. 16 Colorado and host No. 10 Wisconsin.
The women will have 12 athletes facing off against Vanderbilt, Kansas, Miami (Fla.) and Ohio State.
Coming off their last meet, the Gans Creek Classic in Columbia, Missouri, where the men finished third and the women sixth, the team looks to get one last tune-up before the postseason in two weeks. Saturday’s course in Madison is the same course that the NCAA Championships will be held in November.
“It’s a challenging course,” Kindt said. “We’ll have some hills. It’s going to challenge you in a multitude of different ways. I’m hoping with all the hills we’ve done this fall, we’re prepared for a course like this.”
Making her cross country debut for the Tigers in Missouri, freshman Brenda Jepchirchir took gold in the women’s 6k, crossing the line in 19:50.10. She set the course record, beating her closest competition by 3.6 seconds. Jepchirchir won SEC Runner of the Week after capturing her first collegiate win.
Joining Jepchirchir on the women’s side will be seniors Hallie Porterfield and Samantha Rogers, junior Gené Coetzee, sophomores Shelby Balding, Mary Mac Collins, Audrey Dunn, Ava McIntosh and Cady McPhail, and freshman Camila Gomes, Mary Katherine Malone and Alexandra Walsh.
“For the women, this a time for them to build their resume and get some momentum going,” Kindt said. “This is a meet where we can take some risks and chances. We can see where we stack up against some of the better competition in our region and hopefully polish ourselves up for the SEC Championships.”
Coming off the best 8k race of his Auburn career with a fourth-place finish at the Gans Creek Classic in 23:10.30, the men look toward senior Ryan Kinnane to continue leading the team.
Kinnane was the Tigers' first finisher, followed by freshman Nickson Chebii and sophomore Max Hardin, who took 20th and 23rd, respectively.
“On the men’s side, we think we have three guys that can be great at the front with Max Hardin, Nickson Chebii and Ryan Kinnane,” Kindt said. “Our race will be made where Cooper Atkins, Hayden Judge, Joseph Perry and Fuji Anday land. They are going to be the key to our success.”
The men will also send senior Carson Bedics and Louis O’Loughlin as well as sophomore Evan Hill to the line.
“Let’s go to work,” Kindt said. “I feel really good about this group. This is a different challenge. I’m excited to see how they handle it, but I trust this group and the experience they bring.
Live results can be found at pttiming.com.