Grand Rapids Reporter

The Ferris State University men's and women's cross country teams are set to compete in the 2024 NCAA Division II Midwest Region Cross Country Championships. The event is scheduled for this Saturday, November 9, in Romeoville, Illinois.

Teams from the Great Lakes Valley Conference, the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, and the Great Midwest Athletic Conference will participate in this regional meet. Lewis University will host the championships at its cross country course.

The men's 6K race is slated to start at 11 a.m. Eastern Time, followed by the women's 6K race at 12:15 p.m. Eastern Time.

The top three teams from each race will qualify for the NCAA II National Championships on November 23 in Sacramento, California. Additionally, the top two individuals or any individual finishing in the top five who are not part of an advancing team will automatically qualify for nationals. Other teams and individuals will wait to see if they receive one of ten team or eight individual at-large bids available nationwide.

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

Ferris State's men's squad has advanced to national championships twice since 2012 after breaking a long absence since their last qualification in 1985. In their most recent advancement out of regionals in 2014, they placed seventh before achieving a tenth-place finish nationally. The women's team has reached NCAA-II Nationals five times over the past sixteen years due to strong performances at regionals.

Jared Kelsh leads both Ferris State's men's and women's cross country teams as head coach.