Friday, November 14
Earlysville, Va.
10:00 AM ET
Liberty University
at
NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships
(L-R): Zane Lindquist, Nicholas Kiprotich, Ethan Stansbury, Edwin Kiprop, Eli Julian, Andrew Schultz, Ethan Pedersen, Caden Ellis, Tristian Merchant
NCAA SE Regional Championships Set for Friday
11/12/2025 9:26:00 AM | Cross Country
LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Liberty men's and women's cross country teams will stay close to home for Friday's NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships. The meet will take place at Virginia's Panorama Farms course in Earlysville, Va., just 75 miles north of Liberty's campus.
The event, which will determine the team and individual qualifiers to the 2025 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships, will begin with the women's 6K at 10 a.m. The men's 10K will follow at 11 a.m.
How to Follow the Flames and Lady Flames
Live results will be available throughout both of Friday's races, courtesy of Flash Results.
Weather Report
Friday's weather in Central Virginia is expected to be pleasant for distance running, with partly cloudy skies and a high in the mid 60s.
Checking Out the Course
Panorama Farms is playing host to the NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships for the sixth time but the first since 2019. That year, the Flames placed 11th as a team and the Lady Flames came in 13th. Liberty's top individual performers that day were Felix Kandie (42nd in the men's race) and Calli Doan (26th in the women's race).
Since then, Panorama Farms served as the venue for the 2023 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships, a meet where current Flame Nicholas Kiprotich came in 113th.
How to Punch Your Ticket to Columbia
The common goal for all men's and women's teams competing in Earlysville on Friday is to qualify for the 2025 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships, to be contested Nov. 22 at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia, Mo. Here's what it takes:
Team Qualification: The top two teams at each of Friday's nine regional meets will automatically advance to the national meet. Liberty's region consists of teams from Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. The national field will then be filled with 14 at-large selections (an increase of one from 2024), comprising a total of 32 men's and 32 women's teams which will compete in Columbia. The at-large squads will be determined using a formula based upon head-to-head success against other national qualifiers during the regular season.
Individual Qualification: All runners who place in the top 25 at the regional meet earn all-region recognition and become eligible for advancement to Columbia. The national meet features 38 individual competitors not on advancing teams. The top four finishers from each regional meet who are not part of a national-qualifying squad will punch their ticket to Columbia. Then, two at-large individuals will be added to round out the national field.
In summary, the only people who will know for sure that they are bound for Columbia on Friday are the top two teams in each race and the first four individual finishers who are not part of one of those teams. The complete field of team and individual qualifiers to Columbia will be revealed Saturday at 5 p.m. on NCAA.com.
Women's Team Preview
After making it back-to-back CUSA titles in dominating fashion (64-point victory over runner-up New Mexico State), the Lady Flames will attempt to qualify for the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships for just the second time in program history (also spring 2021).
Liberty showcased its team depth and strength at the CUSA Championship on Nov. 1, placing eight runners inside the top 21. These included individual champion Allie Zealand, Jessica Palisca (fourth), Katrina Schlenker (fifth), Rachel Hill (14th), Ryann Aycock (16th), Katie Sigerud (17th), Kate Loescher (18th) and Mackenzie Babcock (21st).
Liberty enters Friday's race ranked No. 10 in a loaded Southeast Region which features five nationally ranked squads (No. 2 NC State, No. 13 North Carolina, No. 16 Virginia, No. 20 South Carolina and No. 29 Duke). The Lady Flames will likely need to defeat at least one of those five teams in order to both improve on their best-ever regional finish (fifth place in both fall 2021 and 2024) and advance to Columbia.
The Lady Flames have recorded three top-10 regional finishes in the last four seasons after doing so only twice in program history prior to fall 2021.
Women's Individual Preview
If Liberty is unable to qualify to Columbia as a team, its top women's individual hopes lie with CUSA individual champion Allie Zealand.
Zealand, who earned all-region honors with a 20th-place showing at this meet as a freshman in 2024, has enjoyed a sensational sophomore campaign to date.
Most recently, Zealand recorded her first collegiate cross country victory when she won the CUSA title by nearly 30 seconds.
Her two previous races included a runner-up finish at the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational in a program-record 15:54.7 5K clocking and a fifth-place showing at the Pre-National Invitational in a program-record 19:40.4 for the 6K distance.
Zealand qualified for the 2025 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships in the women's 1,500 in June. Only five Lady Flames have ever qualified to the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships as individuals, including Zealand's coach and mother (Heather [Sagan] Zealand – 2000 and 2001), Jennifer Klugh (2012), Ednah Kurgat (2015), Calli Doan (fall 2021) and Adelyn Fairley (2024).
Seniors Jessica Palisca and Katrina Schlenker also bear watching after placing fourth and fifth, respectively, at the CUSA Championship. Palisca has only competed at the NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships once previously, coming in 141st in 2023. Schlenker's top regional finish (57th place) was achieved in 2024.
Men's Team Preview
The Liberty men's cross country team finished second to Middle Tennessee at the CUSA Championship, recording its 23rd top-two conference placement in a row.
Ranked No. 10 in the Southeast, the Flames will now look to place inside the Southeast Region's top 10 for the third time in the last four seasons. A year ago, Liberty came in eighth for its top regional finish since 2018. The Flames' best-ever regional meet showing is fifth place in both 2007 and 2008.
Three of Liberty's top five finishers from last year's NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships are back, including Nicholas Kiprotich (27th place), Tristian Merchant (35th) and Andrew Schultz (108th).
This year's Southeast Region field includes five nationally ranked teams (No. 4 Virginia, No. 12 Wake Forest, No. 24 Virginia Tech, No. 27 North Carolina and No. 30 Eastern Kentucky).
Men's Individual Preview
Nicholas Kiprotich has run well during each of his three previous appearances at the NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships, placing 16th (all-region) in 2022, 17th (all-region) in 2023 and 27th in 2024. He successfully advanced to the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships at Panorama Farms, where he crossed the finish line 113th.
With a top-25 finish on Friday, Kiprotich would become a three-time all-region performer for his career. The only Flames ever to collect three or more all-region medals are national champions Josh McDougal (2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007) and Sam Chelanga (2008, 2009 and 2010).
Sophomore Andrew Schultz (sixth place) finished one spot in front of Kiprotich (seventh) at the CUSA meet, serving as Liberty's No. 1 runner for the first time in his career. He appears poised for a significant improvement upon his 108th-place showing from the 2024 NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships.
The event, which will determine the team and individual qualifiers to the 2025 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships, will begin with the women's 6K at 10 a.m. The men's 10K will follow at 11 a.m.
How to Follow the Flames and Lady Flames
Live results will be available throughout both of Friday's races, courtesy of Flash Results.
Weather Report
Friday's weather in Central Virginia is expected to be pleasant for distance running, with partly cloudy skies and a high in the mid 60s.
Checking Out the Course
Panorama Farms is playing host to the NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships for the sixth time but the first since 2019. That year, the Flames placed 11th as a team and the Lady Flames came in 13th. Liberty's top individual performers that day were Felix Kandie (42nd in the men's race) and Calli Doan (26th in the women's race).
Since then, Panorama Farms served as the venue for the 2023 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships, a meet where current Flame Nicholas Kiprotich came in 113th.
How to Punch Your Ticket to Columbia
The common goal for all men's and women's teams competing in Earlysville on Friday is to qualify for the 2025 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships, to be contested Nov. 22 at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia, Mo. Here's what it takes:
Team Qualification: The top two teams at each of Friday's nine regional meets will automatically advance to the national meet. Liberty's region consists of teams from Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. The national field will then be filled with 14 at-large selections (an increase of one from 2024), comprising a total of 32 men's and 32 women's teams which will compete in Columbia. The at-large squads will be determined using a formula based upon head-to-head success against other national qualifiers during the regular season.
Individual Qualification: All runners who place in the top 25 at the regional meet earn all-region recognition and become eligible for advancement to Columbia. The national meet features 38 individual competitors not on advancing teams. The top four finishers from each regional meet who are not part of a national-qualifying squad will punch their ticket to Columbia. Then, two at-large individuals will be added to round out the national field.
In summary, the only people who will know for sure that they are bound for Columbia on Friday are the top two teams in each race and the first four individual finishers who are not part of one of those teams. The complete field of team and individual qualifiers to Columbia will be revealed Saturday at 5 p.m. on NCAA.com.
Women's Team Preview
After making it back-to-back CUSA titles in dominating fashion (64-point victory over runner-up New Mexico State), the Lady Flames will attempt to qualify for the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships for just the second time in program history (also spring 2021).
Liberty showcased its team depth and strength at the CUSA Championship on Nov. 1, placing eight runners inside the top 21. These included individual champion Allie Zealand, Jessica Palisca (fourth), Katrina Schlenker (fifth), Rachel Hill (14th), Ryann Aycock (16th), Katie Sigerud (17th), Kate Loescher (18th) and Mackenzie Babcock (21st).
Liberty enters Friday's race ranked No. 10 in a loaded Southeast Region which features five nationally ranked squads (No. 2 NC State, No. 13 North Carolina, No. 16 Virginia, No. 20 South Carolina and No. 29 Duke). The Lady Flames will likely need to defeat at least one of those five teams in order to both improve on their best-ever regional finish (fifth place in both fall 2021 and 2024) and advance to Columbia.
The Lady Flames have recorded three top-10 regional finishes in the last four seasons after doing so only twice in program history prior to fall 2021.
Women's Individual Preview
If Liberty is unable to qualify to Columbia as a team, its top women's individual hopes lie with CUSA individual champion Allie Zealand.
Zealand, who earned all-region honors with a 20th-place showing at this meet as a freshman in 2024, has enjoyed a sensational sophomore campaign to date.
Most recently, Zealand recorded her first collegiate cross country victory when she won the CUSA title by nearly 30 seconds.
Her two previous races included a runner-up finish at the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational in a program-record 15:54.7 5K clocking and a fifth-place showing at the Pre-National Invitational in a program-record 19:40.4 for the 6K distance.
Zealand qualified for the 2025 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships in the women's 1,500 in June. Only five Lady Flames have ever qualified to the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships as individuals, including Zealand's coach and mother (Heather [Sagan] Zealand – 2000 and 2001), Jennifer Klugh (2012), Ednah Kurgat (2015), Calli Doan (fall 2021) and Adelyn Fairley (2024).
Seniors Jessica Palisca and Katrina Schlenker also bear watching after placing fourth and fifth, respectively, at the CUSA Championship. Palisca has only competed at the NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships once previously, coming in 141st in 2023. Schlenker's top regional finish (57th place) was achieved in 2024.
Men's Team Preview
The Liberty men's cross country team finished second to Middle Tennessee at the CUSA Championship, recording its 23rd top-two conference placement in a row.
Ranked No. 10 in the Southeast, the Flames will now look to place inside the Southeast Region's top 10 for the third time in the last four seasons. A year ago, Liberty came in eighth for its top regional finish since 2018. The Flames' best-ever regional meet showing is fifth place in both 2007 and 2008.
Three of Liberty's top five finishers from last year's NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships are back, including Nicholas Kiprotich (27th place), Tristian Merchant (35th) and Andrew Schultz (108th).
This year's Southeast Region field includes five nationally ranked teams (No. 4 Virginia, No. 12 Wake Forest, No. 24 Virginia Tech, No. 27 North Carolina and No. 30 Eastern Kentucky).
Men's Individual Preview
Nicholas Kiprotich has run well during each of his three previous appearances at the NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships, placing 16th (all-region) in 2022, 17th (all-region) in 2023 and 27th in 2024. He successfully advanced to the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships at Panorama Farms, where he crossed the finish line 113th.
With a top-25 finish on Friday, Kiprotich would become a three-time all-region performer for his career. The only Flames ever to collect three or more all-region medals are national champions Josh McDougal (2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007) and Sam Chelanga (2008, 2009 and 2010).
Sophomore Andrew Schultz (sixth place) finished one spot in front of Kiprotich (seventh) at the CUSA meet, serving as Liberty's No. 1 runner for the first time in his career. He appears poised for a significant improvement upon his 108th-place showing from the 2024 NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Championships.
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