STANFORD, Calif. — For the first time in nearly a month, Stanford cross country is back in action, heading to Madison, Wisc. for the annual Nuttycombe Invite hosted by the University of Wisconsin.
Stanford hits the course at 11:50 a.m. CT/9:50 a.m. PT for the Women’s 6K Championship followed by the Men’s 8K Championship race at 12:30 p.m. CT/10:30 a.m. PT with both outings being held at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course.
Live results for Friday’s meet can be found here.
Stanford returns to the trails following another successful outing in Missouri just a few weeks ago as the Stanford women’s team claimed first place in the Black Championship bracket while the Cardinal men earned 13th in the Gold Championship race at the 7th annual Gans Creek Classic. Leading the way for the Cardinal in the women’s 6K, Hanne Thomsen nabbed a third place finish while the Cardinal earned three, top-10 placements to claim the top spot. On the men’s side, Leo Young placed as the top Cardinal harrier in a field that broke every top-25 time recorded at the course.
For her efforts at Gans Creek, Hanne Thomsen was named the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Women’s Freshman and Performer of the week after racing from ninth through the first 2,000 meters before finishing with a personal best time of 20:15.8 which was good for third overall in the black championship bracket. Through her first two collegiate meets, Thomsen has never finished outside the top-10 and owns Stanford’s top overall time this season on the women’s side.
Stanford’s entries for the Women’s 6K Championship include Olivia Cieslak, Maya De Brouwer, Julia Flynn, Sophia Kennedy, Ava Parekh, Mena Scatchard, Riley Stewart, Hillary Studdert, Hanne Thomsen and Juliette Whittaker.
On the men’s side, Stanford sends out Josh Bell, Toby Chippendale, James Dargan, Byron Grevious, Evan Noonan, Milo Skapinsky, Quinn White and Leo Young.
LAST TIME IN WISCO
Stanford heads back to the Thomas Zimmer Championship course for another year having sent multiple harriers to last season’s Pre-Nationals meet as well as the NCAA Cross Country Championships. Stanford raced well at NCAA’s earning 12th among the men and 6th in the women’s races while the Stanford men had the most success at the Pre-Nationals meet with a third place finish.
On the women’s side, Sophia Kennedy placed highest for the Cardinal at Pre-Nationals earning a 13th place finish overall. At NCAA’s, Amy Bunnage nabbed the lone top-10 placement for Stanford, grabbing fourth overall to earn an All-American honor alongside Kennedy who finished 33rd. For the Cardinal men, Nolan Topper returns to the course following a 78th place finish at last season’s NCAA Championships. Following Topper, Leo Young will look to improve upon a time of 23:05.3 at last year’s Pre-Nationals race in which he came in 23rd overall.
THE FIELD
On the men’s side, No. 18 Stanford joins a list of 15 top-25 teams at this week’s meet that includes No. 1 Iowa State. In total, three of the nation’s top-five programs embark on the trip to Wisconsin as part of the 32-team field.
On the women’s side, No. 11 Stanford is one of 16 teams currently ranked in the USTFCCCA national polls. Out of the 31 teams at this season’s competition, two teams rank inside the top-five including No. 2 NC State and No. 5 New Mexico.