MU Cross Country Prepared to Host BIG EAST Championships

MILWAUKEE – The Marquette university men's and women's cross country teams are set to compete at the 2019 BIG EAST Conference Championships, presented by Jeep, on Saturday, Nov. 2 at the Wayne E. Dannehl National Cross Country Course in Somers, Wisconsin.

The conference championships will be hosted by Marquette, at the Dannehl National Course, for the third time, after meets in 2017 and 2013.

Interim head coach Sean Birren has led both the men's and women's teams to breakthrough seasons in 2019. In five meets this year, the teams have finished no lower than sixth. One of the highlights of the season came at the Greater Louisville Classic, when the women placed fifth of 39 teams and the men took sixth of 41 teams. 22 of the 26 runners who competed that day for MU ran personal bests.

"We want to be at our best when it matters most, and that's this weekend," Birren said. "We've been gearing up for this and all the hard work is done. Our kids have been making sure they're healthy and getting plenty of rest for Saturday."

Seniors Ryan Burd, Kalina Gardiner and Caitlin McGauley (@McGauleyCaitlin) explain why you should come out and support MU cross country this weekend at the BIG EAST Championships!

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— Marquette TF/XC (@MUTFXC) October 30, 2019

SCHEDULE AND STREAMING:
The men's 8K race will begin at 11 a.m. CT followed by the women's 6K race at 11:50 a.m. An award ceremony will take place at 12:45 p.m. following the women's race.

The 2019 Cross Country Championships will be streamed live by the BIG EAST Digital Network on the BIG EAST Conference YouTube channel, @BIGEAST twitter feed and on Caffeine TV. Full coverage of both the men's and women's races begins at 10:55 a.m. CT. Matt Schumacker and Piper Shaw will call the races and conduct on-site interviews with coaches and student-athletes Twitter:

GOLDEN EAGLES NOTES:
Both Golden Eagle squads are looking to improve from last year's placements, with the men placing fourth and the women taking sixth.

The men's fourth-place finish was its best ever since joining the BIG EAST. The Golden Eagle men return senior Daniel Pederson, who will look to earn his third-straight top-10 finish at the conference championships. Pederson finished ninth overall at last year's BIG EAST Championships and took eighth in 2017.

Another one of the men's runners to keep an eye on for all-conference honors is Ryan Burd, who has finished as the overall runner-up in two of the four meets he's competed in this season. He also ran an 8k personal best (24:12.1) at the Greater Louisville Classic on Oct. 5.

The women's side is highlighted by senior captain Caitlin McGauley, who has been the team's top finisher in each of her four races this season. She took 33^rd at the conference meet last year, missing out on All-BIG EAST honors by 13 spots.

She's joined by sophomore Lauren Neiheisel and junior Emily Foley, who have been two of the most consistent runners on the women's team this season. Neiheisel (17:45.0) and Foley (17:54.4) each set 5k personal bests at the Greater Louisville Classic earlier this year.

MU BIG EAST CHAMPIONSHIPS HISTORY:
The MU men had finished fifth at the conference championships in four of the past five years before breaking through last season to place fourth. Daniel Pederson has a chance to become the first MU men's cross country runner in the past 25 years to earn three consecutive All-BIG EAST honors if he finishes in the top 20 at the conference meet on Saturday.
The Golden Eagles women's team achieved its highest finish in the past 13 years in 2017 when they placed fourth at the conference meet. Their top finish came in 2005 when they placed third. The women's team will be looking to earn their first All-BIG EAST honoree since Brittney Feivor and Jennifer Parker finished in the top 20 in 2016.

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING:
Senior Caitlin McGauley: "I'm super excited for the BIG EAST Championships this weekend. I love the course at Parkside and know it like the back of my hand. We know where to push and where to relax a little bit. We're glad to be racing on our home turf."

Senior Kalina Gardiner: "As a team, I just want us to run our fastest and finish as high as we can. Personally, I'd like to run another PR."

Senior Ryan Burd: "This season has been incredible. I don't know if any of us saw the jump that we made this year coming. I'm just thankful to be able to go out and compete with my teammates and to stay healthy for a whole year. I've been racing with the mentality that this is my last race and I have to put everything on the line."

COMPETITION:
All 10 BIG EAST teams will be competing in both the men's and women's races.

2018 BIG EAST CHAMPIONSHIPS:
The Georgetown men used their impressive depth to win last year's event, placing four runners among the top eight finishers. The Hoya team finished with 32 points. Runner-up Villanova had 45 points. Butler was third in the team standings with 53 points, followed by MU.

On the women's side, Villanova cruised to a comfortable victory with six runners taking the top eight places. Georgetown and Providence were second and third with 73 and 76 points, respectively.

Historically, cross country is one of the BIG EAST's most accomplished sports. Nationally, BIG EAST women's teams have won four of the last 10 NCAA national championships. Providence won the NCAA women's title in 2013. Villanova has won nine NCAA women's titles, the last coming in 2010.

ADDRESS/PARKING:
Facility Address: 4400 Petrifying Springs Road, Kenosha, WI 53144
Parking for teams & spectators is located in the Sports and Activities Center & Communication Arts lots east of the course. Parking is not permitted in any of the Petrifying Spring parking lots. Vehicles with handicapped parking passes are allowed to park in the small Petrifying Springs lot directly across from the course entrance.

UP NEXT:
NCAA qualifiers will prepare to head to Madison, Wisconsin on Friday, Nov. 16 to compete at the Great Lakes Regional at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course, the site of the 2018 NCAA Cross Country Championships.

MARQUETTE ENTRIES:

WOMEN:
*Sophie Bolich
*Grace Dargiewicz
Mary Rose Flood
Emily Foley
Kalina Gardiner
Kate Jochims
Caitlin McGauley
Laurel Moneysmith
Lauren Neiheisel
Emily Noone
Kendall Pfrimmer
Hannah Ray

MEN:
August Beyer
Ryan Burd
*Patrick Burns
Brad Eagan
Alex Gill
John Hyland
Jordan Janusiak
Daniel Pederson
Danny Peterson
Paolo Tiongson
*Joshua Urban
Greg Van Hollen

*Alternate

Keep up with the Marquette cross country program through social media by following on Twitter (@MUTFXC) and Instagram (@MUTFXC) and `liking' on Facebook (/MUTFXC).