Joplin, Mo. – The 2023 NCAA Division II Cross Country National Championships are set for Saturday, November 18, marking the third cross country meet hosted by Missouri Southern this fall. Two weeks ago, the Lions served as the host for the NCAA Division II Central Region Championships in 2023, and the annual Southern Stampede took place over a two-day stretch on September 15-16. 

Saturday's race will be the fifth time Missouri Southern has hosted the NCAA Division II National Cross Country Championships. Most recently, the Lions hosted the championships in 2015, but also in 2012, 2007, and 1999. 

The National Championship races will take place at the Tom Rutledge Cross Country Course on Saturday, as the women's 6k will be first at 10:00 AM, followed by the men's 10k scheduled for 11:15 AM. Live results will be available here, and can also be found in the story links section above.
 
With his fifth place finish at the Central Region Championship a couple of weeks ago, Gidieon Kimutai was automatically selected to compete in the NCAA National Championships. He has competed in the National Championships all of his eligible cross country seasons. In 2018, Kimutai placed 4th with a time of 32:11.7, he finished 5th in 2019 at 29:49.9, and ran last year's race in 31:02.6 for 82nd place. 

The Missouri Southern women's team was one of the 10 teams selected at-large. At the Central Region Championship, the women's team placed fifth with a score of 205. Three runners were in the top 40, and all scorers for Southern were in the top 70. Of the 34 teams competing, five are representing the central region. This will be the team's first appearance in the National Championships since 2014, when they automatically qualified with a third place finish at regionals. 

More information regarding the NCAA Division II Cross Country National Championships can be found here, or in the story links section above.