Cross Country Set to Host Annual Crimson Classic Friday Afternoon
10/15/2015 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field, Cross Country
The University of Alabama men's and women's cross country teams host the 2015 Crimson Classic on Friday, Oct. 16. The women will run a 5-kilometer race beginning at 5 p.m. CT with the men's 8-kilometer race set for a 5:30 p.m. CT start. A total of 31 men's and 32 women's teams are slated to compete in this year's Crimson Classic. The Tide is coming off of great performances at the Cowboy Jamboree where the women's team finished second behind host team Oklahoma State and the men's team finished fifth. Redshirt freshman Rachael Reddy won the women's 5-kilometer race crossing the finish line at 21:02.3 and teammate Katelyn Greenleaf finished second running a time of 21:09.3. On the men's team, junior Antibahs Kosgei led the Tide, recording a time of 25:08.9 for seventh place.
University Men (31 teams): Alabama, Alabama State, Auburn, Belmont, Florida State, Houston Baptist, Lipscomb, Louisiana Tech, Loyola-New Orleans, LSU, McNeese State, Memphis, Meridian Community College, Mississippi State, Montevallo, North Florida, Oklahoma State, Sam Houston State, Samford, Shorter, South Alabama, Southern Illinois, Tennessee Tech, Texas A&M, Texas Wesleyan, Texas-Arlington, Texas-Rio Grande Valley, Troy, ULM, Vanderbilt, and West Georgia.
University Women (32 teams): Alabama, Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Auburn, Belmont, Florida State, Houston Baptist, Lipscomb, Louisiana Tech, Loyola-New Orleans, LSU, McNeese State, Memphis, Meridian Community College, Montevallo, North Florida, Ole Miss, Oklahoma State, Sam Houston State, Samford, Shorter, South Alabama, Southern Illinois, Southern Mississippi, Tennessee Tech, Texas A&M, Texas-Arlington, Texas-Rio Grande Valley, Troy, UAB, ULM, and West Georgia.
The Alabama men's cross country team jumped up two spots from 11th to ninth and the women's team held firm at second in the South Region in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Regional Rankings, released Monday, October 5th. The women have been ranked second all four weeks this season while the men moved into the top 10 for the first time. The women's team is also ranked No. 30 in the latest USTFCCCA National Coaches Poll. The team has earned a national ranking on consecutive weeks for the first time since the 1995 season.
The Crimson Tide has entered 34 athletes, 14 men and 20 women, for this weekend's meet. Competing for the men's squad will be senior Parker Deuel, making his season debut, along with fellow seniors Justin Ahalt and Eric Sivill; juniors Payton Ballard, Jeff Edmondson, Robbie Farnham-Rose, Antibahs Kosgei, Evan Prizy and Conner Thompson; sophomores Andrew Bull, Garrett Bull, Connor Ferrentino and Josh Short; and freshman Chris Buechner. Freshman Clay Austell will also be running unattached. The women's team will feature seniors Katelyn Greenleaf, Meropi Panagiotou and Rebecca Stover; juniors Ashlin Conroy, Allison Gregg, Kendall Howen and Hannah Waggoner; sophomores Caroline Barlow, Emily Edwards, Jessica Gray, Veronica Lyle, Alison Ringle and Elizabeth Scott; and freshmen Calli Coggins, Nicole Gardner, Brianna Koshy, Sarah Mohan, Rachael Reddy, Abby Rentschler and Kaitlin York.
Following the Cowboy Jamboree title, Rachael Reddy was recognized by the Southeastern Conference. Reddy was selected as the Southeastern Conference Women's Freshman Runner of the Week for the second time, making this her third SEC honor.
"It's always nice to race at home. We have a comfort level on the course that other teams won't have. It will be a great atmosphere as well, with so many of our friends, family members and teammates out there to cheer us on. This year's field includes several of the top teams from both the SEC and the South Region, so the level of competition should be as high as it has ever been."
The Tide takes one week off to prepare for the Southeastern Conference Championships at College Station, Texas, on Friday, Oct. 30. Last year, the Crimson Tide women finished 3rd, the highest team finish since 1994, and the Tide men placed 6th.
Get all the latest information on the team by following @AlabamaTrack on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. General athletic news can also be found at UA_Athletics on Twitter and Instagram and AlabamaAthletics on Facebook.
