Louisville Set to Host NCAA Southeast Regional on Saturday
November 12, 2009 | Men's Cross Country
Nov. 12, 2009
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of Louisville will team with the Greater Louisville Sports Commission to host the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships for the third time on Saturday, Nov. 14 at E.P. "Tom" Sawyer Park.
The event will begin at 10 a.m. ET, with the men's 10,000-meter race which features five nationally ranked teams, including no. 8 and defending Southeast Region Champion College of William and Mary, no. 16 North Carolina State, no. 19 Virginia, no. 24 Louisville and no. 30 Duke. The women's 6,000-meter race will follow at 11:15 a.m. and will tout a pair of top 30 teams in no. 15 Duke and no. 19 and reigning regional champion Virginia. The top two teams and four individuals in each race will earn automatic bids to the 2009 NCAA Championships on Nov. 23 in Terre Haute, Ind.
The Cardinal men are fresh off a fourth-place finish at the BIG EAST Championships and will be hungry to return to the NCAA Championships after earning runner-up honors in 2007 on this same course. U of L came in ninth overall at last year's event.
U of L is led by redshirt senior Cory Thorne who enters the event after an impressive performance capturing the BIG EAST individual title and becoming the program's first ever conference champion just two weeks ago. Thorne was named an All-BIG EAST performer for the fourth time in his career and will be joined by redshirt junior Michael Eaton who also earned All-BIG EAST accolades with his seventh-place finish.
Joining the duo will be junior Matt Bruce, who placed fifth on this course earlier this year at the Greater Louisville Classic and has an individual title under his belt this season. He finished 30th in the event last year. Also in the mix is redshirt sophomore Matt Hughes, the winner of the Mid-America Opener.
Senior Scott McClain is no stranger to success with a pair of career individual titles and 37th place showing a year ago in the competition, while sophomores Luke Lovelace and Chase Violet have been solid contributors this year and will look to make an impact in the race as well.
On the women's side, Louisville enters the meet after matching a program best with a seventh-place finish at the BIG EAST Championships. A year ago, the Cards placed sixth to earn their highest finish ever at the regional championships. They came in 11th on this course in 2007.
They will be led by senior standout Tarah McKay who finished sixth at the BIG EAST Championships to garner her fourth straight All-BIG EAST honor. McKay will look to improve upon last year's fifth place finish in the race and will vie for her fourth consecutive All-Region nod. The St. Clements, Ont. native brings six career victories and five runner-up finishes, including at the Greater Louisville Classic this season, into the competition.
Junior Emily Borsare who finished 24th in the event a year ago will look to make it three straight All-Region performances, while senior Kim Grieshaber has come on strong this season after narrowly missing out on an All-Region bid with a 27th place showing in 2008. She was the Cards' second finisher at the BIG EAST Championships.
Completing the lineup for U of L will be a savvy group of runners in seniors Kat Alcorn, Kortni Dukes, Kathryn Long and Kelsey Page.
After completion of this race, the Cards will finish the season at the NCAA Championships on Nov. 23 in Terre Haute, Ind. at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course.
For more information on the 2009 NCAA Southeast Regional Championships, visit the regional championships website.
For the most up-to-date information on Louisville Cross Country, visit www.uoflsports.com.
Players Mentioned
