As many of us could have predicted, not everything went according to plan on Regional Championship Friday.

While some programs took care of business and snagged automatic qualifiers for the NCAA Cross Country National Championships in Madison, Wisconsin, others will have to cross their fingers for a coveted at-large bid. 

• Subscribe Today To Watch FloTrack Live And On-Demand
  
• Get The Latest Cross Country Rankings At FloTrack
• NCAA DI XC Regionals Recap and Highlights
• Predictions: NCAA Division I Regional Championships

Ceili McCabe Leads West Virginia To First Region Title In 16 Years

In case you didn't know, 2024 is the year of the 'Neer! After coming into the season receiving minimal national attention, the Mountaineers are at the top of the world as they head into the national championships. Following their fourth-place finish at Pre-Nationals, the national title threats have simply refused to let their foot off of the gas. At Big 12's earlier this month, West Virginia gave No. 1 BYU a run for their money, coming within just 19 points of the top-ranked team in the country. Today, Ceili McCabe (No. 9) and her teammates opted for first, taking down several ranked programs. 

One of the greatest athletes in West Virginia history, McCabe added a Mid-Atlantic Region title to her resume, crossing in 19:11 while No. 4 Georgetown's Chloe Scrimgeour (No. 4) was runner-up in 19:25. Joy Naukot (No. 15), Sarah Tait (No. 78), and Emily Bryce (No. 118) all made their way into the top 11, putting all four runners ahead of Georgetown's third finisher. 

Stanford Women Upset Washington, Snag West Region's Final Automatic Bid

After their dominant display at their first-ever Big 10 Championships, it shouldn't come as a shock that the mighty women of Oregon took care of business en route to their first West Region title since 2018. For the second consecutive showing, seniors Silan Ayyildiz and Maddy Elmore, who each sit at No. 26 and No. 30 in FloTrack's College XC Rankings presented by HOKA, finished back-to-back, placing second and third behind Stanford's Amy Bunnage. The trio crossed at 19:17, 19:19, and 19:23, respectively. 

Another pair of Ducks in the top 12 proved to be more than enough for Shalane Flanagan's squad, comfortably holding off No. 15 Stanford and No. 6 Washington, 43-67-101, respectively.

Speaking of the Cardinal, they had themselves a day in their statement win over former Pac-12 foe Washington. Led by Bunnage's season-opening win, the defending region champs packed three more runners inside the top 16, putting four runners ahead of the Huskies' second finisher. After a 200+ point loss to Washington at Pre-Nationals last month, Stanford evened the score after showing all of their cards.

Washington was led by Maeve Stiles in 14th, and now the Huskies will have to wait for an at-large bid.

Alabama Cruises To South Region Sweep Over SEC Foes

As they say, "Roll Tide Roll"! That's quite literally exactly what the Alabama men and women did this morning in Tallahassee, as they took both region titles back to Tuscaloosa. Doris Lemngole, (No. 1) the Tide's frontrunner suffered her first loss of the year despite finishing at the exact same time as former teammate and current Florida Gator, Hilda Olemomoi. Although she didn't get the win, Lemngole led a pair of teammates into the top 10 as Brenda Tuwei (No. 38) and Pheline Cheruto (No. 85) placed third and seventh. 'Bama put up 63 points to Florida's 79. Both teams secured their spot on the starting line next week in Wisconsin where they'll get one last shot at bragging rights for the next year.

Just like the women, the Alabama men used a lethal trio to bring home the biggest trophy. Dismus Lokira (No. 57), Victor Kiprop (No. 11), and Dennis Kipruto (No. 54) went 1-2-3, crossing in 29:30, 29:34, and 29:42. Evan Trapp (NR) and Jack Hawes (No. 263) round out the scoring in 29th and 45th, still enough to keep Ole Miss at bay. The Rebels made a valiant effort as Toby Gillen (No. 67), Elyas Ayyoub (No. 242), and Aiden Britt (NR) finished 6-7-13, but a combined six points for Alabama's top three was all it took. The final team score was 80-91 in favor of 'Bama, but both are heading to nationals. 

Oklahoma State Cruises Past Midwest Challengers, Sweeps Team Titles

The Cowboys successfully righted the ship this morning, bouncing back for a solid showing in Illinois. Led by No. 2 Oklahoma State and their four runners inside the top seven, there was no doubt they'd be capable of holding off No. 3 Iowa State down the homestretch, ultimately pulling ahead of the Cyclones, 25-43. Denis Chepngetich (No. 7) and Laban Kipkemboi (No. 38) packed a 2-3 punch, while Brian Musau (No. 3) and Victor Shitsama (No. 13) placed sixth and seventh.

For the second-straight year, No. 13 Oklahoma State had to get out the brooms after sweeping the team titles, as the women got the day started on a high note, notching a 15-point win over No. 20 Minnesota. Led by Josphine Mwaura (No. 76) in fourth and a trio of Cowgirls in seventh, 10th, and 13th, the Golden Gophers simply couldn't keep pace despite Ali Weimer's (No. 32) runner-up finish. Both teams kept their seasons alive and will duke it out at NCAAs next Friday.

When Is The NCAA D1 Cross Country Championships 2024; NCAA XC Championship Schedule

The Cross Country Championships are at 10:20 a.m. (women’s 6000m) and 11:10 a.m. (men’s 10000m) on Nov. 23. The Division II and Division III Championships will be held on the same day, though start times have not yet been determined.

Where Are The NCAA D1 Cross Country Championships 2024?

The NCAA Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Division I National Championships are at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Course in Verona, Washington. They will be hosted by the University of Wisconsin.

Here are where all divisions are being held: 

• Division I: Thomas Zimmer Championship Course in Verona, Wisconsin
• Division II: Arcade Creek Cross Country Course in Sacramento, California
• Division III: LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course in Terre Haute, Indiana.

FloTrack Is Streaming Cross Country High School State Meets All November

November is also the month of high school cross country championship meets. Check the FloTrack schedule for a list of all the state championships streaming on FloTrack

Join the Cross Country Conversation on Social

• Follow us on Twitter @FloTrack.
• Follow us on Instagram @flotrack.
• Follow us on TikTok @flotracktv
• Watch us on YouTube.
• Like us on Facebook.