BETHLEHEM, Pa. – All 20 Patriot League men's and women's cross country teams will compete at the NCAA DI Cross Country Regional Championships at two separate sites on Friday, Nov. 15.

The men's and women's programs from American, Bucknell, Lafayette, Lehigh, Loyola Maryland and Navy will race in the Mid-Atlantic Regional, hosted by Penn State, at the Penn State Cross Country Course in State College, Pa. The women's 6K race begins at noon. The men's 10K race will kick off at 1:00 p.m.

Army West Point, Boston University, Colgate and Holy Cross will participate in the Northeast Regional hosted by the University of Massachusetts, Lowell at the Hopkinton State Fairgrounds in Hopkinton, New Hampshire. The women's 6K race will begin at 11 a.m., with the men's 10K race at noon.

There are nine NCAA DI Cross Country Regional sites, with the top two teams at each regional race automatically qualifying for the NCAA Championship. Thirteen additional at-large teams are selected for the 2024 NCAA DI Cross Country Championship race in Verona, Wisconsin at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Course on Saturday, Nov. 23.

As for individuals, thirty-eight individuals will be selected to participate in each championship through an automatic qualifier and at-large selection process. The first four regional finishers not from an automatic qualifying or at-large team also secure a bid to the championships. 

2024 NCAA DI Cross Country Regional Championships  

EVENT	TEAMS	COURSE/LOCATION	TIME/LIVE RESULTS
Women's 6K Mid-Atlantic	American, Bucknell, Lafayette, Lehigh, Loyola, Navy	Penn State XC Course/State College, Pa.	Noon/Live Results
Men's 10K Mid-Atlantic	American, Bucknell, Lafayette, Lehigh, Loyola, Navy	Penn State XC Course/State College, Pa.	1:00 p.m./Live Results
Women's 6K Northeast	Army, Boston U, Colgate, Holy Cross	Hopkinton State Fairgrounds/Hopkinton, N.H.	11 a.m./Live Results
Men's 10K Northeast	Army, Boston U, Colgate, Holy Cross	Hopkinton State Fairgrounds/Hopkinton, N.H.	Noon/Live Results

The Navy men and the Army West Point women took home the team titles at the Patriot League Cross Country Championships on Saturday, Nov. 2 at Lafayette College. It was the fourth-straight title for the Midshipmen, while the Black Knights earned back-to-back titles for the first time since 1996-1997. In the men's race, Army West Point finished second, while Boston University logged a third-place finish. Boston University and Navy finished second and third, respectively in the women's race. 

Three Patriot League men's cross country squads are among the top 10 in the Mid-Atlantic Region according to the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) regional rankings, released on Nov 4. The Navy men are fourth after winning the Patriot League title. Lehigh and Bucknell both climbed into the top 10 at 8th and 9th, respectively. In the Northeast Region, Army West Point earned an eighth-place ranking as the lone Patriot League squad in the top 10.

Two Patriot League women's teams are among the top 10 in the Mid-Atlantic Region led by Navy at No. 7, with Bucknell trailing them slightly at No. 10. The Black Knights' women's team placed eighth, while Boston University holds the ninth spot in the Northeast Region.   

Runner to Watch – Women's 6K 

Vera Sjöberg, Boston University, Jr., Stockholm, Sweden/Rudbeck
Sjöberg finished 26th overall at last season's NCAA regional race as a sophomore and continued to climb the ranks this fall. She finished as the individual champion at the 2024 Patriot League Women's Cross Country Championship and had a 30-second advantage over the second-place finisher. Her mark of 19:45.9 at this season's championship was a career best, and places her in a great position to continue her success at the regional race. 

Runner to Watch – Men's 10K  

Murphy Smith, Navy, Sr., Charlotte, N.C./Ardrey Kell 
Smith won his second-straight Patriot League championship in 2024, posting a career-best 8K mark of 23:14.5. The senior leads a strong and experienced group of Midshipmen that have a chance to make a push for a team bid at this season’s regional. Smith qualified for the NCAA DI Cross Country Championship a year ago with a runner-up regional finish, and he should be in the conversation yet again this season.  

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP INFORMATION 
The 2024 NCAA Division I Men's and Women's Cross Country Championships will be held on Saturday, Nov. 23 at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Course in Verona, Wisc. Both championships provide for a maximum of 31 (five-to-seven-person) teams and 38 individuals. Eighteen teams automatically qualify for the championship races by finishing as one of the top two teams at any of the nine regional races. The remaining 13 at-large teams are selected by the NCAA Division I Cross Country Subcommittee. Thirty-six individuals automatically qualify for the championship races by being one of the top four regional finishers who are not on an AQ or at-large team. Two additional individuals are picked as at-large runners by the committee. Fans can watch the selection show on Saturday, Nov. 16, at 5 p.m. ET, on NCAA.com.

ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athletes can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League's athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes who are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.