VERONA, Wis. -- The Stanford men’s and women’s cross-country teams compete in the NCAA Championships on Saturday at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Course.
The women’s 6-kilometer (3.73-mile) race begins at 7:20 a.m. PT, followed by the men’s 10K (6.2 miles) at 8:10 a.m. PT.
The Stanford women are ranked No. 8 nationally by the USTFCCCA and the men are No. 9.
Headlining for the Stanford women is sophomore Amy Bunnage, the NCAA West Region champion, and five-time All-American Cole Sprout for the men.
The Stanford women have won five NCAA team titles, in 1996, 2003, 2005, 2006, and 2007. They’ve also been runners-up five times, most recently in 2002.
The Stanford men are seeking their first NCAA team title since 2003, when the Ryan Hall-led Cardinal scored only 24 points on the way to one of the most dominant victories in NCAA history.
The Cardinal men have won four NCAA titles, in 1996, 1997, 2002, and 2003. They’ve also been runners-up five times, most recently in 2016.
Last year, the Stanford men were eighth and the women 12th. The top returning placers from that meet in Earlysville, Virginia, was Robert DiDonato in 49th for the men, and Bunnage in 59th for the women. Sprout was a career-best 15th at the (March) 2021 NCAA Championships.
Stanford’s individual runners-up have been: Grant Fisher in 2018, Chris Derrick in 2011, Neftalem Araia in 2006, Ryan Hall in 2003, and Gary Stolz in 1992 for the men. And Regina Jacobs in 1985 for the women.
Both Stanford teams have reached the NCAA Championships for the 31st consecutive season. The women are on a streak of 32 and the men 31.
Stanford is among eight Atlantic Coast Conference teams in the 31-team women’s field. There are seven in the men’s field. Among former Pac-12 schools, four are in each of the men’s and women’s fields.
At the ACC Championships on November 1 in Cary, North Carolina, Stanford placed second as a team in both the men’s and women’s races. Stanford’s top finishers were Sprout in fourth for the men and Zofia Dudek in 10th for the women’s.
Stanford raced on this course at the Pre-Nationals on October 19. The men were third and the women 11th. Stanford’s top individuals were Sprout in ninth and Sophia Kennedy in 13th, respectively.
This is the third time the NCAA Cross Country Championships have been hosted by Wisconsin, with previous races in 2018 and 1978. In 2018, the Stanford men and women each placed fifth. Grant Fisher led the Cardinal men by placing second. Elise Cranny was the top Stanford woman, in 11th. Both Fisher and Cranny now are two-time Olympians.
Stanford’s best men’s times on the Thomas Zimmer 10K course are:
29:08.8, Grant Fisher, 2018
29:33.9, Alex Ostberg, 2018
29:52.6, Alek Parsons, 2018
30:27.3, D.J. Principe, 2018
30:52.7, Tai Dinger, 2018
Stanford’s best women’s times on the Thomas Zimmer 6K course are:
19:41.7, Sophia Kennedy, 2024
19:46, Kathy Kroeger, 2012
19:53, Elise Cranny, 2014
19:55.4, Fiona O’Keeffe, 2019
19:57.7, Zofia Dudek, 2014