Grand Rapids Reporter

The Ferris State University men's and women's cross country teams are set to compete in the 2023 NCAA Division II Midwest Region Cross Country Championships. The event will take place on Saturday, November 4, in Evansville, Indiana.

Teams from the Great Lakes Valley Conference, the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, and the Great Midwest Athletic Conference will participate. The championships will be hosted at Angel Mounds, a historic site with ties to Native American history, by the Evansville Regional Sports Commission and the GLVC.

The women's 6K race is scheduled for 10 a.m. Central Time, followed by the men's 10K at 11:15 a.m. Central Time. The top three teams from each race will qualify for the NCAA II National Championships on November 18 in Joplin, Missouri. Additionally, the top two individuals or all individuals within the top five not part of an advancing team will also qualify automatically. Other teams and individuals must wait to see if they receive one of ten team or eight individual at-large bids nationwide.

Schools from nine states—Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Wisconsin—will be represented at this regional meet.

The Bulldog men's team has previously advanced to national championships twice since 2012. Their first advancement since 1985 led them to a tenth-place finish at nationals after qualifying through regionals. In 2014, they placed seventh regionally.

The women's team has reached NCAA-II Nationals five times over the past fifteen years following strong regional performances.

Jared Kelsh, a former Bulldog standout and local native, coaches both Ferris State cross country teams.