Hokies gear up for NCAA Southeast Regional meet

The field consists of 41 women's teams and 39 men's teams, and the top two on each side receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships next week

November 9, 2017

The Virginia Tech cross country programs departed Blacksburg on Thursday headed for Earlysville, Virginia, the site of the 2017 NCAA Southeast Regional cross country meet being held at Panorama Farms.

2017 NCAA SOUTHEAST REGIONAL

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The Tech men’s team will be one of 39 teams competing in the regional, while 41 teams will be competing on the women’s side, including the Hokies. Both the men’s and women’s fields feature three teams ranked in the latest United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association national poll. The top two teams in each race at the regional meet receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships being held at E.P. “Tom” Sawyer State Park in Louisville, Kentucky on Nov. 18.

Both Tech squads are coming off strong performances at the ACC Championships held Oct. 27 also at E.P. “Tom” Sawyer State Park in Louisville. The Tech men’s team, ranked No. 9 in the USTFCCCA national poll, used four top-20 performances to come in second behind Syracuse. The women’s team, which is receiving votes in the same poll, equaled a program-best at the ACC’s meet when it came in third place behind NC State and Louisville.

Peter Seufer headlines the Tech men’s squad, as he has been the Hokies’ top finisher in each of the past three meets. Those performances include top-10 finishes at the Adidas Pre-National Invitational on Oct. 14 and the ACC Championships, where he came in seventh to earn All-ACC honors for the first time.

Daniel Jaskowak, Neil Gourley and Vincent Ciattei also earned All-ACC honors following their finishes at the ACC Championships. Jaskowak became just the fourth multiple-time All-ACC choice in program history, joining Devin Cornwall (2008, 2009), Will Mulherin (2009, 2011, 2012) and Thomas Curtin (2012, 2013, 2015). Gourley and Ciattei earned All-ACC recognition for the first time.

On the women’s side, Katie Kennedy leads the way as the team’s lone senior. Kennedy has been the Hokies’ top finisher in all three races in which she has run this season, including the ACC Championships, where she finished 19th to earn All-ACC honors for the second time. She became just the third runner in program history to earn All-ACC recognition on multiple occasions, joining Tasmin Fanning (2007, 2008) and Sarah Rapp (2013, 2014).

Mikayla Richardson, Laurie Barton and Sara Freix are also a part of Tech’s contingent on the women’s side. Richardson finished 20th at the ACC meet, earning All-ACC honors for the first time.

The women’s 6K race starts the regional meet at 10:30 a.m., while the men’s 10K race begins at 11:30 a.m. Admission to the event is free, though there is a $5 charge to park.

The NCAA Cross Country Selection Show will be held Saturday at 3 p.m. and can be watched on the NCAA website at NCAA.com. The Tech men will be looking to make their seventh appearance at the NCAA Championships in program history, while an appearance at this year’s Championships would be the third in program history for the Tech women.

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