INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The NCAA Division III Men's and Women's Track and Field and Cross Country Committee announced yesterday, November 17, that both the Ithaca College men's and women's cross country teams have qualified for the DIII Cross Country Championships this Saturday, November 23 in Louisville, Ky.
 
After third and fourth place finishes at the NCAA Atlantic Regional last weekend in Canton, N.Y., the men's and women's team received at-large bids to the championship. Teams who place in the first and seconds spots at regionals receive automatic bids to the final run, 16 other teams receive at-large bids in regions. 
 
This is the first time since 2002 that both teams have qualified for nationals at the same time. The women placed at seventh in 2002, while the men took 17th.

"I'm excited for our kids on both teams to have this experience together," head men's head coach Jim Nichols. "Both teams are senior-oriented and they are peaking at the right time. They have worked so hard over the past four years and it's great to see it pay off this fall. Erin has done a tremendous job with her team and I know our guys are ready for this opportunity. During the year, one of our student-athletes said he wants this team to be one of the best in program history and they have that chance Saturday."
 
Nationals is set to be held at Tom Sawyer State Park in Louisville, Ky. this Saturday, Nov. 23. The men's race will start at 10:45 a.m. while the women will follow at 11:45 a.m.

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MEN
The men's cross country's team's last appearance at nationals was in 2002, making it 17 years since IC made a title run.
 
The Bombers were ranked No. 29 before going into this weekend, where seven student-athletes ran the 8K course for IC at the Atlantic Regional hosted by St. Lawrence University.
 
Junior Chris Singer was the top finisher for the Bombers in 14th with a time of 25:40.9. Sophomore Danny Jagoe finished behind Singer in 19th with a time of 25:47.8.
 
Senior Jeff Montgomery came in 25th with a time of 25:54.2. Junior Alec Hofer and senior Forest Stewart rounded out IC's top five runners in 40th and 42nd overall with times of 26:12.0 and 26:13.5.
 
Seniors Christopher Tinti and John Blake also raced for IC on Saturday. Tinti clocked in at 26:31.7 and Blake crossed the line with a time of 27:17.1.
 
WOMEN
This is the first time the women's team has appeared at nationals since 2017, where the team placed ninth with 350 points. Taryn Cordani '18 placed the highest for the Bombers in 14^th that season.
 
Ithaca was ranked at No. 26 going into this weekend's race, and runners faced a field of 274 other contenders.
 
Senior Parley Hannan once again took the top spot once again for the Bombers this weekend, winning the 6k with a time of 21:01.2. She finished in front of SUNY Geneseo's Genny Corcoran by just 5.2 seconds for the title.
 
Six other student-athletes ran for the Bomber's last weekend including Sarah Rudge, who finished in the top 10 runners at ninth with a time of 22:38.9.
 
Seniors Annie Morrison and Maggie Nickerson also took top-25 finishes for IC. Morrison finished in 21st with a time of 23:09.9 while Nickerson finished in 23rd place in 23:14.12.
 
Junior Lizz Eberhardt rounded out IC's top five with a 48th place finish in 23:49.5. Senior Maria Matkoski and junior Kelly Farrell did not factor into Ithaca's team total, but ran exception races with times of 24:11.9 and 24:15.9.