In a season filled with surprises from start to finish, Northwestern cross country’s crowning achievement somehow may have been its least shocking one. By finishing second at the NCAA Midwest Regional at the University of Missouri last Friday, the Wildcats automatically earned their first NCAA Cross Country Championship berth since 2002 and third ever. They will race in Stillwater, Okla. on Saturday at 9:20 a.m. CT, with the meet broadcast on ESPNU.
This is a special accomplishment for this program, and it warrants some explanation as to why it is so significant.
This wasn’t unexpected in the last few weeks leading up to the Midwest Regional simply because NU exceeded preseason expectations with such flying colors that it only took until mid-October for the ‘Cats to become a favorite to qualify out of the Midwest.