Cross Country Embarks On Final Weekend Of The 2014 Season
11/20/2014 11:50:00 AM | Cross Country
NCAA Championships Page | IC4A/ECAC Championships Page
NEW YORK - The 2014 Columbia cross country campaign will come to a close on Saturday, with two runners heading to Terra Haute, Indiana, for the NCAA Championships, and the rest of the members of the two teams taking a short trip on the uptown 1-train to Van Cortlandt Park for the IC4A/ECAC Championships.
Two Columbia runners that were part of the USATFCCCA All-Region team will run at the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships, after impressive performances at the NCAA Regional meet. Jack Boyle and Daniel Everett were two of the four at-large bids that advanced to the NCAA Championships out of the Northeast Region, along with Kevin Dooney of Yale, and Tom Purnell of Harvard.
Aside from the top two teams that finish at NCAA Regionals earning a spot at the NCAA Championships, the next fastest four individuals also advance. Boyle and Everett were among the next four, as the sophomore Boyle clocked a 30:39.91 in the 10K for 13th place overall, while the senior Everett was in 16th place at 30:44.13, last Friday at Van Cortlandt Park.Thanks in part to their top finishes, the men took home fourth place in the region, out of 39 teams.
The pair will compete against 31 men's teams that have qualified, via either an automatic qualifier or an at-large bid. In addition, 36 other individuals from across the country became at-large qualifier.
The race itself will be hosted by Indiana State at the Wabash Valley Family Sports Center, in Terra Haute, Indiana. Boyle and Everett are scheduled to run at 1 p.m., after the conclusion of the women's race.
Other members of both the men's and women's teams will have an earlier start to the day, when they take part in the IC4A/ECAC Cross Country Championships, which will have a 9:30 a.m. start time. The championships will be hosted by Iona.
The men hope to get a boost from a third member who earned All-Northeast Region status last Friday, in Tait Rutherford. Although he barely missed qualifying for the NCAA Championships, Rutherford clocked a 30:57.98 in the 10K, finishing in 21st place. This was the second notable race that the junior had completed this year, becoming a part of the All-Ivy League team at the Heps Cross Country Championships. On that day, Rutherford finished his 8K in tenth place, clocking a 24:46.0.
For the Columbia women, a seventh place finish out of 40 teams last time out at the NCAA Regionals should provide momentum into the last weekend of the cross country season. Olivia Sadler and Leila Mantilla finished less than six seconds apart from one another, as Sadler crossed the line in 21:12.67 for 32nd, while Mantilla finished in 21:18.31 for 37th.
Sadler and Mantilla also shined at the Heps Cross Country Championships, earlier this fall. Sadler earned a spot on the first-team All-Ivy League team when she finished fifth overall, clocking a 20:46.0 in the 6K. Mantilla took home second-team All-Ivy League honors, taking ninth place in 21:07.5.
Players Mentioned
