Hokies back in action at NCAA Pre-National Meet

Both Tech squads return to Louisville for the second of three straight meets

October 13, 2017

BLACKSBURG – The Virginia Tech cross country teams return to action Saturday when both squads compete in the NCAA Pre-National Meet held Saturday morning at E.P. “Tom” Sawyer Park in Louisville, Kentucky.

The field includes a whopping 63 men’s teams and 70 women’s teams. Eight of the men's teams and 10 women's teams are currently ranked nationally in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) poll. The overall quality of the competing teams will be on display, with teams racing on the course as a preview for the 2017 NCAA Division I National Championship being contested on Nov. 18.

(For the meet central page, please click here.)

The Hokies return to Louisville for the second of three consecutive meets. Nearly two weeks ago, Tech squads competed in the Louisville Sports Commission Cross Country Classic held on the same course, with the men’s team coming in third after seven runners finished in the top 40 and the women’s team finishing 10th. The Tech women, though, ran without senior standout Katie Kennedy, who was battling an illness.

Following that meet, the Tech men moved to No. 12 in the USTFCCCA poll – the program’s highest ranking ever. Peter Seufer led the Hokies at the meet, coming in 15th out of 279 runners and running the 8K course in a time of 23 minutes, 48.74 seconds. Seufer earned ACC Men’s Performer of the Week honors for his efforts.

On the women’s side, Kayla Richardson paced the Hokies, coming in 36th and running the 5K course in a time of 17:19.13. Laurie Barton (44th) and Sarah Edwards (54th) both finished in the top 60.

The NCAA Pre-Nationals will commence at 10 a.m. with the men's seeded race, followed by the women's seeded race at 10:45 a.m. The remaining runners will compete in unseeded races, with the men starting at 11:30 a.m. and the women at 12:15 p.m.

For updates on Virginia Tech cross country, follow the Hokies on Twitter Follow @VT_Track