Cullowhee, N.C. – The Western Carolina cross country teams head back to Virginia for the 2025 NCAA Southeast Regional Championships in Charlottesville, Va. The NCAA qualifying meet is scheduled for a 10 a.m. start with the women's 6K race before the men's 10K finishes the day at 11 a.m.
The Southeast Regional meet is hosted by the University of Virginia, with the Catamounts set to return to the Panorama Farms Course after competing at the Virginia Invitational in September.
Friday's Meet Information:
Nov.14 | NCAA Southeast Regionals | Charlottesville, Va. | Panorama Farms
Women's 6K: 10:00 a.m.
Course Map: https://tinyurl.com/3fpnkde6
Men's 10K: 11:00 a.m.
Course Map: https://tinyurl.com/bdhh2jsb
Live Results: https://tinyurl.com/ycxxtt7h
Teams (52): Appalachian State, Bellarmine, Campbell, Charleston Southern, Clemson, Coastal Carolina, College of Charleston, Davidson, Duke, East Carolina, Eastern Kentucky, Elon, Furman, Gardner-Webb, George Mason, Hampton, High Point, James Madison, Liberty, Longwood, Morehead State, Murray State, Norfolk State, NC A&T, NC Central, NC State, Northern Kentucky, Presbyterian, Queens, Radford, SC State, The Citadel, Charlotte, UNCG, Kentucky, Louisville, UNC Asheville, UNC Wilmington, North Carolina, Richmond, USC Upstate, South Carolina, Virginia, VCU, VMI, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Western Carolina, Western Kentucky, William & Mary, Winthrop, Wofford
Coming off a fourth-place showing at the Southern Conference championship, the Catamounts will send a full contingent of women's runners to compete at the event, with the team slated to earn its first regional placement since a 27th-place finish in 2022. Only two men's runners will see action for the Catamounts in Charlottesville, with freshmen Matthias Peterson and Jaleb Saunders scheduled to run their first collegiate 10Ks.
WCU's women's team is coming off a strong performance at the SoCon championships, with the team earning its best finish since the 2003 season. Katherine Hopkins and Peyton Skoglund led the way for the Catamounts, finishing 15th and 18th, respectively, in the 5K. The duo competed at the Southeast regionals last season as well, with Hopkins setting a new PR in the 6K.
Also competing on the women's side are Braelyn Shae-Wahy, Amaya Hicks, Madeline Hladik, Grace Lane, Riley McKinney, and Jessica Connole. Wahy, Hicks, and Hladik rounded out WCU's scoring five at the SoCon championships, with Lane, McKinney, and Connole finishing just outside scoring range for the Catamounts.
Matthias Peterson and Jaleb Saunders led the Catamount men's team at the SoCon Championships, with Peterson finishing 17th and Saunders coming in at 33rd. The freshman duo was named to the SoCon All-Freshman team for their finishes, joined by Eli Clonch.
The top two finishing teams at the Southeast Regionals will automatically qualify for the NCAA National Championships in Columbia, Mo, on Nov. 22. The 32-team field will be filled out by 14 at-large team selections. Additionally, 38 individuals will be selected to compete at the championships, with the first four regional finishes not from an auto-bid team securing their own individual spot at the national championships.
