CHAMPAIGN, ILL – The Illinois men's and women's cross country program will compete at 2017 Big Ten Championships on Sunday, October 29 in Bloomington, Indiana. Ran on the Indiana Championship Cross Country Course, the men's 8K will begin at 9:45 a.m. central time and will be followed by the women's 6K race at 10:45.
Meet Information
Running for the Illini
Watch Tape Delay on Big Ten Network
Big Ten Network will air a tape delayed broadcast of the meet on Monday, October 30 at 7:30 p.m. central time. A tape-delayed stream of the meet will also be available on BTN2Go.com as well.
Follow the Meet
Live results for 2017 Big Ten Championships can found via Prime Time Timing at pttiming.com/events/87930520. Fans can follow @IlliniMXC and @IlliniWXC on Twitter for updates during the meet. A full recap will be posted on fighgtingillini.com following the completion of the meet.
Fan Information
Admission to the Big Ten meet is free to the public with a $10 parking fee per car. Pets are not allowed into the course and all championship merchandise will be available for cash only.
Course Information
Hosting its sixth Big Ten Cross Country Championships (1969, 1978, 1987, 1996 and 2006), the Indiana Championship Cross Country Course is rolling, wooded terrain that is optimal for both racing and spectating. After starting on flatter ground, the course works its way into rolling hills at the race's midpoint before re-lopping the first part of the race backwards.
A Look At The Men's Competition
Seven teams enter the men's 8K either ranked or receiving votes in the most recent (Oct. 17) USTFCCCA poll, the Big Ten meet is sure to be a close competition among the conference's top half. Following a breakthrough at Wisconsin two weeks ago, Michigan enters the meet as the highest ranked team in the conference at No. 13, while No. 15 Michigan State and No. 18 Minnesota are close behind. Not included in the rankings is defending Big Ten champion Wisconsin who ranked among the top-10 earlier in the season. The Illini are still receiving votes and were recently ranked as high as No. 16 following a top-five finish at Louisville.
Coach Stewart on the Men's Race:
"It's as balanced as I've ever seen the conference. I really like the depth of our team, bringing five of seven guys back from NCAAs last year. We have a lot of interchangeable parts and I think the guys know that there's a focus on running their own individual race."
Sizing Up the Women's Race
Same as the men, the women's race will feature a handful of ranked teams led by a pair of top-10 programs in No. 9 Penn State and No. 10 Michigan, both of whom placed 1-2 at last year's Big Ten meet won by Michigan. No. 17 Wisconsin, No. 19 Minnesota, No. 20 Michigan State and No. 29 Indiana round out the six ranked teams.
Coach Haveman on the Women's Race:
"The women have a done a great job developing and progressing this fall. As we enter the Big Ten Championships, it's important we stay focused on the things we can control and continue to develop as a individuals as a program. With five freshmen, in the line up, this will serve as great experience moving forward for our program. Our seniors have done a great job with the freshmen by providing constant support and leadership. We will need great races from our core of freshmen and our upperclassmen in order to have the kind of day we think we can have, and set the tone for the kind of program we want to be moving forward.
Illini Notes
Jon Davis Enters As Individual Title Contender
Never having finished lower than 12th in any of his three races this season, Jon Davis enters the Big Ten meet as one of the contenders for the individual title. Two weeks ago at Wisconsin, Davis finished sixth overall (23:51.0), tops among Big Ten teams, in a field that featured 20 ranked schools. A week earlier, Davis ran the fourth-best time in school history at Louisville (23:43.14). The Illini sophomore placed 17th at last year's meet.
Alex Gold Named Big Ten Athlete of the Week
Following his runner-up finish at the Illini Open on October 20, the Big Ten named Alex Gold its Big Ten Cross Country Athlete of the Week. The redshirt senior timed 25:37.0 behind 2016 NCAA Qualifier Michael Ward. It's the second Athlete of the Week award for the Illini this season after Jesse Reiser won it on September 22.
Illini History at Big Ten Championships
The Illini men own three Big Ten team titles, the last coming in 1984, while the women have tallied four runner-up finishes in program history. Individually, the Illini have won the individual title nine times highlighted by Craig Virgin's record four titles from 1973-1976. Cassie Hunt owns the women's program's only individual title, winning it in 2005. Both squad's most recent top three finish came in 2015 when Dylan Lafond and Alyssa Schneider both placed third.
Illini Men Ranked As High As 16th
After the Orange and Blue put together a stellar end to the month of September, the USTFCCCA ranked the Illini 16th. It was the highest ranking in program history, surpassing the No. 19 ranking the 2015 team achieved after placing runner-up at Big Ten Championships. The Illini are currently receiving votes in the poll and sit fourth in the USTFCCCA Midwest Regional rankings.
Jon Davis Runs Fourth-Fastest 8K in Illinois History
The first Illini to run a sub-24:00 8K since 2015 Big Ten Championships, sophomore Jon Davis clocked 23:43.14 in Louisville on September 30. Davis' time ranks fourth in Illinois history, third best among 8K times, as Ty Wolf's 23:43.0 mark came on the way to a 10K at the 1984 District IV Meet. Former Illini Dylan Lafond holds the school record of 23:22.4 at 2015 Big Ten Championships.
Jesse Reiser Named Big Ten Athlete of the Week
Following the Battle in Beantown on September 22, the Big Ten conference named Jesse Reiser its Athlete of the Week. The honor comes on the heels of an individual title at the Battle in Beantown for the Illini junior. Reiser won the race with the second-fastest 8K of his career (24:12), edging sophomore teammate Jon Davis (24:13) who took second.
Craddock Leading Illini in First Season
Freshmen Rebecca Craddock has wasted no time in contributing, as the Brunswick, Ohio native has led the Illini in each of her first four collegiate races. In addition to leading the Illini, the newcomer has lowered her 5K personal-record in each race. After timing 17:58 at Eastern Illinois and 17:53 at Boston, Craddock shaved 17 more seconds off (17:36) at the Greater Louisville Classic.
Fighting Illini Begin First Season As Combined Program
Following the consolidation of the Illinois cross country and track programs, Jake Stewart has been charged with leading both the men's and women's distance programs. Now in his sixth season at Illinois, Stewart led the men's team for the previous five years and most recently led the squad to its first NCAA Cross Country Championship appearance in 30 years. Sarah Haveman joins the staff as an assistant coach after spending five years coaching at Dayton.
Illini Men Bring Championship Experience
Not only did the Illini advance to NCAA Cross Country Championships for the first time since 1986, placing 23rd, the group did so with a lineup mainly comprised of underclassmen. The Illini are just one of four teams to return five or more runners from last year's NCAA lineup, tying Iowa State and Virginia and just one behind Southern Utah's six returners. Each of the five Illini back in 2017 have two years of eligibility remaining, including Jon Davis and Zach Dale who are only entering their sophomore season.
Illini Women Feature 16 Underclassmen
With the change in leadership on the women's side, the team itself will also look new with 10 incoming freshman joining the team this fall to go along with six returning sophomores. Delaney Appino, Alana Austin, Madeline Bruce, Kelli Callahan, Nicki Cast, Rebecca Craddock, Caroline Fix, Mikaela Lucki, Allison McGrath and Katie Stapleton all begin their Illini careers this fall.
Up Next
The Illini turn their attention to the Midwest region, as the Orange and Blue race at the Midwest Regional meet on Friday, November 10 in Ames, Iowa. The men's squad will be looking to qualify for NCAA Championships for the second straight season after placing third at the meet last season in Iowa City.
For complete coverage of Fighting Illini cross country, visit FightingIllini.com, follow the Illini on Twitter (@IlliniMXC and @IlliniWXC) and Instagram (@IlliniMXC and @IlliniWXC) and like Fighting Illini Men's Cross Country and Fighting Illini Women's Cross Country on Facebook.
