NCAA D-III Cross Country Championships Website


All of the hard work put in during the preseason and during the year comes to fruition this Saturday (Nov. 21) for the Emory University men's and women's cross country teams, as they venture to the Lake Breeze Golf Course in Winnceconne, Wisconsin, to compete in the 2015 NCAA D-III Championships. The 36th edition of the women’s 6,000-meter race begins at noon (EST), while the 43rd version of the men’s 8,000-meter competition commences at 1:00 p.m. (EST).  Serving as the host institution is UW-Oshkosh.

The women’s race will be comprised of 280 runners from 81 institutions. The men’s event features 280 competitors from 79 institutions. A total of 19 schools are represented at this year’s championship by both their men’s and women’s programs, including three programs that won both men’s and women’s regional titles. Emory University (Ga.) swept the South/Southeast Region races to join double winners State University of New York at Geneseo in the Atlantic Region and Williams College in the New England Region.

The Emory women’s team, ranked 21^st nationally, is making its 11^th consecutive trip to nationals.  The Eagles easily topped the 27-team field at the NCAA South/Southeast Regionals last weekend, with their top five finishers placing among the top 15 overall out of 200 runners. Emory totaled 35 points while runner-up Rhodes College recorded 106 points.  Senior Elise Viox crossed the finish line in the No. 1 position, posting a personal-best 6K time of 22:05, representing the seventh time in as many outings this year that she ranked as the Eagles’ No. 1 performer.  In the process she became the first Emory runner to win the competition since Tess Gallegos since 2010.  Viox’s effort helped her claim Region Athlete of the Year as announced by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). Johns Hopkins enters this year’s women’s race as three-time defending champion.

The men’s squad, ranked 31^st on the national scene, earned its third consecutive spot in the national field after racing to first place out of 30 teams at the South/Southeast Championships, finishing with 86 points.  All of the Emory scorers finished among the top 25 finishers in the 203-runner field, led by senior Lukas Mees who finished in the No. 1 spot, clocking an 8K time of 25:46.  Mees became the first Emory men’s runner to win Regionals since Phil Hagedorn in 2003.  Mees has been the Eagles’ top runner in all seven meets this fall and his effort at Regionals was the third time this year that he had finished first overall in a race (Charlotte Invitational & JSU Foothills Invitational).  Mees was named the Region Cross Country Athlete of the Year by the USTFCCCA.  North Central College enters this year’s event as four-time defending champion.