TERRE HAUTE, Indiana – Texas A&M seniors Hillary Montgomery and Grace Fletcher, a pair of Aggie roommates, will race over the 6,000-meter course at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course on Saturday in the 2014 NCAA Cross Country Championship race.
The women's race begins at 11 a.m. (CT) and will be broadcast via the web on ncaa.com. The link is available here: http://www.ncaa.com/liveschedule/2014/11/22. Race day conditions on Saturday call for temperatures to be in the mid-40s, a chance of rain along with 15 mph wind gusts.
“Hillary and Grace have both done a tremendous job this season and it's great to see them advance to the national championships,” said Texas A&M head coach Pat Henry. “They've both worked very hard to achieve this accomplishment.”
This marks the 10th consecutive season A&M's program has had at least one individual compete in the national meet. Montgomery makes her second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Championship race while Fletcher makes her debut in the national meet. Both will offer a strong challenge to finish among the top 40 places to earn All-American honors.
“They both have that kind of potential,” said Texas A&M assistant coach Wendel McRaven. “It's something we've talked about. All they really need to do is continue to race the way they've been racing this season. When you're fit, training well and racing well I think it becomes a simpler task of managing your stress levels entering a race like this.”
The last two Aggie women who earned a second NCAA berth in cross country improved dramatically. Christina Munoz finished 183rd in 2007 with a time of 22:14.1 and improved to 46th with a clocking of 20:45.9 in 2008. Natosha Rogers placed 57th in 2011 while running 20:41.7 after placing 164th in 21:53.1 in 2010.
“I think it's good to have a teammate there because you spend all season traveling with teammates,” stated McRaven. “That's the tough part when you qualify as an individual, then you've lost your teammates. So, it's always good to have somebody there with you.
“The great thing is they're regular roommates on road trips and they've also been real roommates four years in college. They're familiar with each other and it makes the trip a little more comfortable for both of them. They should go into the race a little more relaxed.”
Montgomery, who fell near the first 1,000-meter mark last season, placed 190th in 21:58.1. Her experience on the course will also aid her teammate as Fletcher races the course for the first time.
“With this being Hillary's second time in the national meet she is going to be a little bit more knowledgeable of how things go in a race like this,” noted Henry. “Grace will be able to use Hillary's experience to understand what is going on in this race.”
In earning All-Region honors during the NCAA South Central meet, Montgomery (20:17.2) and Fletcher (20:19.6) both finished among the top 10, placing eighth and ninth, respectively. Aggie teammate Karis Jochen (20:31.4) finished 10th and narrowly lost a tie-breaker by seven seconds when two at-large selections were made for the NCAA Championship field.
At the SEC Championships, Montgomery challenged the lead pack as she finished fifth with a time of 19:56.1 in securing first team All-SEC honors. Fletcher placed 16th in the SEC meet with a time of 20:40.2.
When A&M raced among an elite field at the Wisconsin Invitational in mid-October, Montgomery finished 16th (20:17) while Fletcher placed 28th (20:28). An abundance of teams and individuals from that meet will comprise the field in the NCAA Championship race.
In the national team rankings heading into the championship weekend the top 10 women's teams include Michigan State, Georgetown, Oregon, Arkansas, Iowa State, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Colorado, New Mexico and Stanford. In the Wisconsin Invitational the team title was won by Michigan State over Arkansas, Iowa State, Wisconsin, West Virginia, New Mexico and Stanford.
Following are results of how Texas A&M women have fared recently in the NCAA Championship race.
AGGIE WOMEN at NCAA CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
YEAR ATHLETE FINISH TIME
2013 Hillary Montgomery 190th 21:58.1
2011 Natosha Rogers 57th 20:41.7
2010 Natosha Rogers 164th 21:53.1
Tara Upshaw 178th 22:03.9
2008 Christina Munoz 46th 20:45.9
Elizabeth Slaughter 214th 22:07.7
2007 Christina Munoz 183rd 22:14.1
2006 Meredith Snow 75th 21:53.5
2005 Sarah Balfour 125th 21:19.4
2002 Melissa Gulli 31st 20:29.8
Meredith Crane 106th 21:21.4
2000 Texas A&M 18th 447 points
Melissa Gulli 22nd 21:17.2
Andrea Bookout 26th 21:19.2
Brooke Edwards 132nd 22:15.3
Jennifer Whatley 190th 22:47.0
Sarah Steadman 191st 22:47.3
Kristy Bonn 208th 23:03.1
Kayci Waters 213th 23:10.3