Hogs To Battle For Regional Crown In College Station
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – One championship trophy in hand – two more to go. The No. 17 Arkansas men’s cross country team will continue their postseason title-hunt Friday, Nov. 10 in College Station, Texas at the NCAA South Central Region Championships.
“I love the course,” head coach Chris Bucknam said. “They’ve [Texas A&M] done an incredible job building it from scratch. We’ve had success on it. It’s a good feel place for us.”
Teams competing at the Regional championships include: T-No. 17 Arkansas, T-No. 17 Texas, Baylor, Houston, Incarnate Word, Lamar, Louisiana-Lafayette, LSU, McNeese State, New Orleans, North Texas, Prairie View, Rice, Sam Houston State, Stephen F. Austin, Texas A&M, Texas A&M Corpus Christi, Texas State, Tulane, UL-Lafayette, UT-Arlington, UT-Rio Grande Valley and UT-San Antonio.
Arkansas returns three All-Region performers Jack Bruce, Alex George and Andrew Ronoh from the 2016 championships team which saw the Hogs race past former Southwest Conference rival Texas by a 41-point margin. Ronoh was the top Razorback finisher at the meet last year, completing the 10K in 30:00.20.
Last Regional Rodeo in College Station
• Date: Nov. 13, 2015
• Champions: Arkansas, 51 points (3-4-6-12-26)
• Outcome: 18-point margin of victory
• Runner-up: Texas, 69 points (5-7-18-19-20)
Wooo Pig v. Hook em’ Horns
Out of the 36 regional titles Arkansas has won, 22 have been attained through overcoming a spirited battle with perpetual runner-up Texas. Successfully topping the Longhorns in the last four regional meetings, the Razorbacks have averaged a 17.75-point margin of victory. The 2016 NCAA South Central Region Championships saw four Arkansas runners complete the race faster than the second Texas finisher.
“We’re excited to go back to College Station for regionals,” Bruce said. “I have a lot of good memories at that course, especially being a part of my first SEC Cross Country Championships team. We’ve taken a lot of hits in the Coaches rankings since Pre-Nats and Texas will be ready to try and take us down, but myself and the guys are confident that if we stick to our game plan we shouldn’t have any problems.”
Arkansas Cross Country at the Regional Championships
• 36 All-Region selections (since 2010)
• 36 Regional titles
• 21 Regional individual titles
– Most Recent: 2014, Stanley Kebenei
• Last Perfect Finish (1-2-3-4-5), 1982
• Largest Margin of Victory, 84 (1998)
Meet Info
The 2017 NCAA South Central Region Championships will begin at 9:15 a.m. CT with the women’s 6K race. The men’s 10K race will follow at 10:15 a.m. after which an awards ceremony will be held for the top individual performers and team champions.
Live results will be available for the meet through flash results. Additional information regarding the meet can be found at the NCAA South Central Region Championships central.
Admission is free to fans of all ages.
2017 Cross Country Schedule
Fri, Sept. 1 – Cowboy Preview (Stillwater, Okla.) 1st of 4
Fri, Sept. 15 – Iona College Meet of Champions (New York, N.Y.) 2nd of 11
Sat, Sept. 30 – Chile Pepper Festival (Agri Park) 1st of 40
Sat, Oct. 14 – Pre-Nationals (Louisville, Ky.) 9th of 40
Fri, Oct. 27 – SEC Championship (Athens, Ga.) 1st of 13
Fri, Nov. 10 – NCAA South Central Regional (College Station, Texas)
Sat, Nov. 18 – NCAA Championship (Louisville, Ky.)
*italicized meet denotes completion.
For more information on Arkansas track and field including in-meet updates, follow @RazorbackTF on Twitter.
