Lansing Sun

Michigan State University's women's cross country team has secured an at-large bid to participate in the NCAA Championships scheduled for November 23 in Madison, Wisconsin. Riley Hough will also represent the university as an individual competitor on the men's side. This announcement was made by the NCAA on Saturday.

The Spartan women's team has consistently qualified for the NCAA Championships for 24 consecutive years. In contrast, this marks Hough's debut at the National Championships.

The upcoming 2024 NCAA Cross Country Championships will take place at Madison's Thomas Zimmer Championship Course. The women’s race is a 6K event set to begin at 10:20 a.m. Eastern Time, followed by the men’s 10K race at 11:10 a.m. Eastern Time. The awards ceremony is planned for approximately noon Eastern Time.

Michigan State is familiar with this course, having competed there earlier this season during the Wisconsin Pre-National Meet.

At the recent Great Lakes Regionals, Michigan State's women finished fourth in their 6K race, earning 111 points. Big Ten Freshman of the Year Rachel Forsyth led her team by finishing second with a time of 19:31.7. Teammate Kaitlyn Hynes finished seventh with a time of 19:46.3, and both athletes received All-Region honors.

Taylor Ewert and Olivia Millen also contributed significantly, finishing in positions 32nd and 33rd respectively. Millen achieved a personal best with her performance.

On the men's side, Riley Hough achieved a notable seventh-place finish in his 10K race with a time of 29:26.9, marking it as the best-ever finish by a Spartan in an NCAA Regional race over that distance.

As they prepare for Madison, Michigan State's women aim to break into the top ten for the first time in four years and pursue their first national title since their initial victory in 2014.