Saturday, November 18
Charlottesville, Va.
11:10 AM ET
Liberty University
at
NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships
Kiprotich Places 113th in NCAA XC Debut
11/18/2023 12:30:00 PM | Cross Country
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Making his first NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships appearance on Saturday, Liberty's Nicholas Kiprotich placed 113th to finish in the top half of the field.
The native of Eldoret, Kenya traversed the challenging 10K course at Panorama Farms in 30:40.1, finishing about two minutes behind individual champion Graham Blanks of Harvard (28:37.7). Kiprotich came in third among the five CUSA participants in Saturday's race, which featured 236 total finishers.
Despite the fact that Panorama Farms sits just 75 miles away from Liberty's campus, Kiprotich was competing there for the first time in his career on Saturday. Panorama Farms hosted the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships for the first time on a bright, sunny morning, and it was the event's first visit to Virginia since 1987.
Liberty's first men's cross country runner to qualify for this meet since Azaria Kirwa in 2018, Kiprotich punctuated a successful junior season. The CUSA Men's Athlete of the Week on Oct. 3 was a first team All-CUSA performer, placing seventh at the conference meet. He also earned all-region honors for the second year in a row with a 17th-place showing at the NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships.
Men's 10K Individual Results (236 Total Finishers):
1) Graham Blanks, Harvard – 28:37.7
2) Habtom Samuel, New Mexico – 28:40.7
3) Ky Robinson, Stanford – 28:55.7
4) Denis Kipngetich, Oklahoma State – 28:59.7
5) Drew Bosley, Northern Arizona – 29:03.8
113) Nicholas Kiprotich, Liberty – 30:40.1
Up Next
With cross country season now complete, Liberty will turn its attention to the 2023-24 indoor track & field campaign. The Liberty Kickoff will get things started, Nov. 30-Dec. 1 at the Brant Tolsma Indoor Track at the Liberty Indoor Track Complex.
The native of Eldoret, Kenya traversed the challenging 10K course at Panorama Farms in 30:40.1, finishing about two minutes behind individual champion Graham Blanks of Harvard (28:37.7). Kiprotich came in third among the five CUSA participants in Saturday's race, which featured 236 total finishers.
Despite the fact that Panorama Farms sits just 75 miles away from Liberty's campus, Kiprotich was competing there for the first time in his career on Saturday. Panorama Farms hosted the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships for the first time on a bright, sunny morning, and it was the event's first visit to Virginia since 1987.
Liberty's first men's cross country runner to qualify for this meet since Azaria Kirwa in 2018, Kiprotich punctuated a successful junior season. The CUSA Men's Athlete of the Week on Oct. 3 was a first team All-CUSA performer, placing seventh at the conference meet. He also earned all-region honors for the second year in a row with a 17th-place showing at the NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships.
Men's 10K Individual Results (236 Total Finishers):
1) Graham Blanks, Harvard – 28:37.7
2) Habtom Samuel, New Mexico – 28:40.7
3) Ky Robinson, Stanford – 28:55.7
4) Denis Kipngetich, Oklahoma State – 28:59.7
5) Drew Bosley, Northern Arizona – 29:03.8
113) Nicholas Kiprotich, Liberty – 30:40.1
Up Next
With cross country season now complete, Liberty will turn its attention to the 2023-24 indoor track & field campaign. The Liberty Kickoff will get things started, Nov. 30-Dec. 1 at the Brant Tolsma Indoor Track at the Liberty Indoor Track Complex.
Players Mentioned
/ Cross Country
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Allie Zealand Talks About The Cross Country & Indoor Track Season
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