The University of Mississippi Athletics
Saturday, November 17
Madison, Wis.
10:45 AM
Ole Miss
vs
NCAA Championships
Rebels Looking to Make More History at NCAA Championships
11/15/2018 | Cross Country
<i class="icon-paper"></i> Meet Info<i class="icon-video"></i> Watch<i class="icon-stats"></i> Live Results
Ole Miss One of Nine Schools to Qualify Both Men and Women Three Consecutive Years
MADISON, Wis. – It's been a storybook season for the Ole Miss men's and women's cross country teams, and both Rebel squads will put the entire season on the line for one more chance at history at the NCAA Cross Country Championships, hosted this Saturday morning at the University of Wisconsin.
This is the third straight year that Ole Miss has qualified both its men's and women's teams to the national meet, making it one of just nine schools to do so alongside Arkansas, BYU, Colorado, Iowa State, NC State, Oklahoma State, Oregon and Stanford. Impressively, Ole Miss not only has qualified both its teams to the NCAA Championships these last three years, but they've also performed at a high level. The Rebels stand alongside just six other schools with a chance to make it three consecutive seasons of placing both teams in the top-25 of the national meet this weekend beside Arkansas, BYU, Colorado, NC State, Oregon and Stanford.
Ole Miss has been on a recent tear of setting new norms in its cross country program, but the 2018 season has seen a flurry of historic firsts. The Rebel men brought home the first SEC Championship title in program history on Oct. 26, snapping Arkansas' eight-year streak and becoming the first school not named Arkansas or Alabama to win since Tennessee did in 1990. The Rebels followed that up with a show of dominance at the NCAA South Regional last week, winning by 47 points to clinch their fifth consecutive national berth and third regional title in the last five years. Those efforts helped garner SEC Men's Coach of the Year and USTFCCCA Men's South Region Coach of the Year honors for sixth-year coach, Ryan Vanhoy.
The Rebel women haven't been far behind, finishing third at the SEC Championships for the third consecutive year (after never finishing in the top-three prior to 2016), and earning an at-large spot to NCAAs for their third straight national berth.
The recent cold temperatures in Mississippi may prove beneficial, as the current projected racetime temperature in Madison on Saturday morning is 31 degrees. The Rebel women will kick things off in the championship 6K race at 10:45 a.m. CT, followed by the men's championship 10K at 11:45. Fans can watch live with a subscription to FloTrack.
Women's Championship 6K Preview – 10:45 a.m. CT
No. 26 Ole Miss Women's National Roster
Anna Elkin
Courtney Hopkins
Maddie King
Maddie McHugh
Clio Ozanne-Jaques
Victoria Simmons
Ylvi Traxler
Lisa Vogelgesang
Ole Miss sports the same young and deep women's roster that it has sent to the SEC Championships and the NCAA South Regional, which includes no seniors and four All-Region runners after a strong race at Florida State last week.
Sophomore Clio Ozanne-Jaques has been the standard bearer for the Rebel women this season, which for Ozanne-Jaques kicked off right here in Madison back on Oct. 13 for the Pre-National Invitational. She was the top Rebel finisher in that race, finishing 37th overall. Ozanne-Jaques' second year has been a steady improvement over what was already a strong freshman campaign, as last year she was the top finisher at the NCAA Championships for Ole Miss in 109th place overall. This year, she has earned Second-Team All-SEC for a 12th-place finish at the conference meet, as well as NCAA All-South Region for the second straight year following the highest regional finish in program history in fifth place last week.
It's also been a strong sophomore campaign for All-Region finisher Maddie King, who has been around that No. 2 or 3 spot for the Rebel women consistently this season. Freshmen Ylvi Traxler and Lisa Vogelgesang also snatched All-Region honors last week.
After never qualifying for the NCAA Championships prior to the 2016 season, the Rebel women will be looking for their third-straight top-25 team finish at the national meet following a 23rd-place finish in 2016 and 25th-place finish in 2017.
Men's Championship 10K Preview – 11:45 a.m. CT
No. 14 Ole Miss Men's National Roster
Farah Abdulkarim
Cade Bethmann
Michael Coccia
Mario Garcia Romo
Dalton Hengst
Mark Robertson
Ben Savino
Waleed Suliman
Ole Miss enters Saturday ranked No. 14 on the men's side of competition, but if this season has proven anything, it's that the Rebel men can't be counted out. The Rebels broke the formchart with a tremendous team effort at the SEC Championships, using a scoring spread of 14 seconds to bring home the first SEC title in school history. They followed that up last week with an absurd 47-point win over Florida State with similar tactics, and they will look to replicate some of that same kind of magic that the 2016 squad had when they wound up on the NCAA podium with a fourth-place finish.
At Pre-Nationals, the Rebel men took seventh in a highly competitive race, finishing behind five schools ranked within the top-13, but beating out four nationally ranked teams in the process.
With just one senior on the championship roster, the future definitely looks bright for the Rebels, but this team also has the talent now to place some runners quite high by the end of the 10K race on Saturday.
Junior Farah Abdulkarim has been a spark of a new addition to the Rebel squad, helping lay the charge at the SEC Championships and leading Ole Miss in third place at the South Regional – just the fourth top-three individual regional finish in school history.
Fellow All-Region runners Cade Bethmann, Mario Garcia Romo, Mark Robertson, Ben Savino and Waleed Suliman form a fearsome group of potential Rebel scorers alongside Abdulkarim.
--------------
Ryan Vanhoy Transcript
On the being named SEC and USTFCCCA Men's South Region Coach of the Year…
"It has obviously been a good season for our program. In terms of the coaching awards, I don't really get too concerned with those, it's just more of a reflection on how the team is doing. But it certainly has been an exciting year and we are looking forward to heading to Madison on Saturday to finish the season on a high note."
On the goal to outperform rankings…
"You want to run on a level that at least validates that the rankings are fair and hopefully they'll outperform that by a bit if possible."
On getting over the hump in the SEC…
"It has been competitive with us and about four or five other teams for the last few years. To finally have a breakthrough moment, it validates all that hard work and sacrifice that the teams have put in over the years. It showed us that we are good enough to win and compete in this league and hopefully it will be a turning point for us and teams to come in the future."
On having student-athletes from so many different backgrounds…
"Our team has kind of always been known as one that is kind of fun and upbeat. They have a good time, they enjoy the mundane tasks of training. So, I think having guys and girls from diverse backgrounds I think is entertaining and you get to learn about different parts of the globe and getting to know people from all walks of life is certainly a fulfilling aspect of the job and our team as a whole."
On how he recruits from other countries…
"Lots of different ways. From people you know, from past athletes that you've had that know people. Sometimes just on program reputation, people that want to run at a school in the U.S. but they want to go somewhere where other international athletes have had success. No two-people's pathway to Ole Miss is the same."
On the reasons for the confidence the teams have shown this year…
"I wouldn't say there is anything in particular that has led me to be confident other than what we have done day-to-day all season. I think we've been very consistent this season. We have gone to a lot of high-level meets this year to get experience because we are a younger roster. I think the consistency of performance over the year and the consistency in our work day-to-day gives me confidence. For them, as they have done better and better, the confidence keeps building."
On the expectations for NCAAs…
"We are just going to compete the best that we can. We went to the Pre-National meet on the exact same course five weeks ago, and we basically used that as an opportunity to get acquainted with the course, the conditions, and a field of that size. I think we will try to draw some experience from that. But in a field of 250 people, you don't really notice too much who the person to your left or right might be, you are just trying to beat as many people as you can and execute your race plan the best that you can."
Cade Bethmann Transcript
On winning SEC Freshman of the Year…
"I think it is very cool to get the award. I am very grateful, but as a team at SECs, we accomplished something a lot better so for me, walking home with (the championship) was a much bigger deal."
On being able to compete this year…
"The plan last year was to redshirt because I had very minimal experience in cross country. In high school, you run the 5K and then going into college you run the 8K-10K, so that jump is pretty big even for experienced people. The jump from not even contributing in high school to contributing in college has been huge for me. I was primarily a middle-distance guy in high school."
On being able to contribute at the SEC level…
"I'm a competitor, so any time I see any level of running I want to be a part of it. That was definitely a goal of mine during the summer, I wanted to be able to contribute at the SEC level, and I knew if I was doing that I would be able to contribute at the national level as well."
On having such a young team…
"Over summer camp, we just had a team meeting and a lot of us decided that the past guys did such a great job of building a program, that we knew it was on us, the younger guys, to continue that tradition. So to see us continue and carry the torch was something that we wanted to be a part of for sure."
Waleed Suliman Transcript
On having a lot of international teammates…
"I'm actually from Sudan. I grew up my whole life in Jordan, though, and I moved to the US in 2014. It's kind of like what Vanhoy said; we get to learn from each other culture-wise and see people from different parts of the world and see how they react to us. It is definitely something great that we get to learn."
On when he realized that the team could contend…
"We had a couple of guys that were getting hurt early in the season, and that moment we were kind of concerned about it. We just had some people that came in and stepped up. We put it all together and realized that if we run as a team and do exactly what Vanhoy told us to do, we will be fine. It was something that I had never experienced before. At mid-race I looked around me and I saw all of my teammates there and I was like, 'we're gonna get it boys.'"
On how it feels to be a part of the breakthrough team…
"I definitely was way too excited. I know that the guys have been trying to get it, and they always fell just short. To be a part of the team that actually makes me realize how hard they worked for it and how big of an opportunity that it was for them. I am pretty thankful that we actually got to get it and tell the old guys that we got it."
On future goals…
Right now, the goals are set to just improve and do a little bit better than what we are expected to do. We are ranked like ninth at FloTrack and obviously the goal for this year is to be around top-10. For the following years, knowing that most of the guys on going to come back for the next few years, obviously the goal is going to be higher and for next year it is going to be top-five, and the year after we all are talking about winning the national championship."
For more information on Ole Miss Track & Field and Cross Country, follow the Rebels on Twitter (@OleMissTrack), Facebook and Instagram.
This is the third straight year that Ole Miss has qualified both its men's and women's teams to the national meet, making it one of just nine schools to do so alongside Arkansas, BYU, Colorado, Iowa State, NC State, Oklahoma State, Oregon and Stanford. Impressively, Ole Miss not only has qualified both its teams to the NCAA Championships these last three years, but they've also performed at a high level. The Rebels stand alongside just six other schools with a chance to make it three consecutive seasons of placing both teams in the top-25 of the national meet this weekend beside Arkansas, BYU, Colorado, NC State, Oregon and Stanford.
Ole Miss has been on a recent tear of setting new norms in its cross country program, but the 2018 season has seen a flurry of historic firsts. The Rebel men brought home the first SEC Championship title in program history on Oct. 26, snapping Arkansas' eight-year streak and becoming the first school not named Arkansas or Alabama to win since Tennessee did in 1990. The Rebels followed that up with a show of dominance at the NCAA South Regional last week, winning by 47 points to clinch their fifth consecutive national berth and third regional title in the last five years. Those efforts helped garner SEC Men's Coach of the Year and USTFCCCA Men's South Region Coach of the Year honors for sixth-year coach, Ryan Vanhoy.
The Rebel women haven't been far behind, finishing third at the SEC Championships for the third consecutive year (after never finishing in the top-three prior to 2016), and earning an at-large spot to NCAAs for their third straight national berth.
The recent cold temperatures in Mississippi may prove beneficial, as the current projected racetime temperature in Madison on Saturday morning is 31 degrees. The Rebel women will kick things off in the championship 6K race at 10:45 a.m. CT, followed by the men's championship 10K at 11:45. Fans can watch live with a subscription to FloTrack.
Women's Championship 6K Preview – 10:45 a.m. CT
No. 26 Ole Miss Women's National Roster
Anna Elkin
Courtney Hopkins
Maddie King
Maddie McHugh
Clio Ozanne-Jaques
Victoria Simmons
Ylvi Traxler
Lisa Vogelgesang
Ole Miss sports the same young and deep women's roster that it has sent to the SEC Championships and the NCAA South Regional, which includes no seniors and four All-Region runners after a strong race at Florida State last week.
Sophomore Clio Ozanne-Jaques has been the standard bearer for the Rebel women this season, which for Ozanne-Jaques kicked off right here in Madison back on Oct. 13 for the Pre-National Invitational. She was the top Rebel finisher in that race, finishing 37th overall. Ozanne-Jaques' second year has been a steady improvement over what was already a strong freshman campaign, as last year she was the top finisher at the NCAA Championships for Ole Miss in 109th place overall. This year, she has earned Second-Team All-SEC for a 12th-place finish at the conference meet, as well as NCAA All-South Region for the second straight year following the highest regional finish in program history in fifth place last week.
It's also been a strong sophomore campaign for All-Region finisher Maddie King, who has been around that No. 2 or 3 spot for the Rebel women consistently this season. Freshmen Ylvi Traxler and Lisa Vogelgesang also snatched All-Region honors last week.
After never qualifying for the NCAA Championships prior to the 2016 season, the Rebel women will be looking for their third-straight top-25 team finish at the national meet following a 23rd-place finish in 2016 and 25th-place finish in 2017.
Men's Championship 10K Preview – 11:45 a.m. CT
No. 14 Ole Miss Men's National Roster
Farah Abdulkarim
Cade Bethmann
Michael Coccia
Mario Garcia Romo
Dalton Hengst
Mark Robertson
Ben Savino
Waleed Suliman
Ole Miss enters Saturday ranked No. 14 on the men's side of competition, but if this season has proven anything, it's that the Rebel men can't be counted out. The Rebels broke the formchart with a tremendous team effort at the SEC Championships, using a scoring spread of 14 seconds to bring home the first SEC title in school history. They followed that up last week with an absurd 47-point win over Florida State with similar tactics, and they will look to replicate some of that same kind of magic that the 2016 squad had when they wound up on the NCAA podium with a fourth-place finish.
At Pre-Nationals, the Rebel men took seventh in a highly competitive race, finishing behind five schools ranked within the top-13, but beating out four nationally ranked teams in the process.
With just one senior on the championship roster, the future definitely looks bright for the Rebels, but this team also has the talent now to place some runners quite high by the end of the 10K race on Saturday.
Junior Farah Abdulkarim has been a spark of a new addition to the Rebel squad, helping lay the charge at the SEC Championships and leading Ole Miss in third place at the South Regional – just the fourth top-three individual regional finish in school history.
Fellow All-Region runners Cade Bethmann, Mario Garcia Romo, Mark Robertson, Ben Savino and Waleed Suliman form a fearsome group of potential Rebel scorers alongside Abdulkarim.
--------------
Ryan Vanhoy Transcript
On the being named SEC and USTFCCCA Men's South Region Coach of the Year…
"It has obviously been a good season for our program. In terms of the coaching awards, I don't really get too concerned with those, it's just more of a reflection on how the team is doing. But it certainly has been an exciting year and we are looking forward to heading to Madison on Saturday to finish the season on a high note."
On the goal to outperform rankings…
"You want to run on a level that at least validates that the rankings are fair and hopefully they'll outperform that by a bit if possible."
On getting over the hump in the SEC…
"It has been competitive with us and about four or five other teams for the last few years. To finally have a breakthrough moment, it validates all that hard work and sacrifice that the teams have put in over the years. It showed us that we are good enough to win and compete in this league and hopefully it will be a turning point for us and teams to come in the future."
On having student-athletes from so many different backgrounds…
"Our team has kind of always been known as one that is kind of fun and upbeat. They have a good time, they enjoy the mundane tasks of training. So, I think having guys and girls from diverse backgrounds I think is entertaining and you get to learn about different parts of the globe and getting to know people from all walks of life is certainly a fulfilling aspect of the job and our team as a whole."
On how he recruits from other countries…
"Lots of different ways. From people you know, from past athletes that you've had that know people. Sometimes just on program reputation, people that want to run at a school in the U.S. but they want to go somewhere where other international athletes have had success. No two-people's pathway to Ole Miss is the same."
On the reasons for the confidence the teams have shown this year…
"I wouldn't say there is anything in particular that has led me to be confident other than what we have done day-to-day all season. I think we've been very consistent this season. We have gone to a lot of high-level meets this year to get experience because we are a younger roster. I think the consistency of performance over the year and the consistency in our work day-to-day gives me confidence. For them, as they have done better and better, the confidence keeps building."
On the expectations for NCAAs…
"We are just going to compete the best that we can. We went to the Pre-National meet on the exact same course five weeks ago, and we basically used that as an opportunity to get acquainted with the course, the conditions, and a field of that size. I think we will try to draw some experience from that. But in a field of 250 people, you don't really notice too much who the person to your left or right might be, you are just trying to beat as many people as you can and execute your race plan the best that you can."
Cade Bethmann Transcript
On winning SEC Freshman of the Year…
"I think it is very cool to get the award. I am very grateful, but as a team at SECs, we accomplished something a lot better so for me, walking home with (the championship) was a much bigger deal."
On being able to compete this year…
"The plan last year was to redshirt because I had very minimal experience in cross country. In high school, you run the 5K and then going into college you run the 8K-10K, so that jump is pretty big even for experienced people. The jump from not even contributing in high school to contributing in college has been huge for me. I was primarily a middle-distance guy in high school."
On being able to contribute at the SEC level…
"I'm a competitor, so any time I see any level of running I want to be a part of it. That was definitely a goal of mine during the summer, I wanted to be able to contribute at the SEC level, and I knew if I was doing that I would be able to contribute at the national level as well."
On having such a young team…
"Over summer camp, we just had a team meeting and a lot of us decided that the past guys did such a great job of building a program, that we knew it was on us, the younger guys, to continue that tradition. So to see us continue and carry the torch was something that we wanted to be a part of for sure."
Waleed Suliman Transcript
On having a lot of international teammates…
"I'm actually from Sudan. I grew up my whole life in Jordan, though, and I moved to the US in 2014. It's kind of like what Vanhoy said; we get to learn from each other culture-wise and see people from different parts of the world and see how they react to us. It is definitely something great that we get to learn."
On when he realized that the team could contend…
"We had a couple of guys that were getting hurt early in the season, and that moment we were kind of concerned about it. We just had some people that came in and stepped up. We put it all together and realized that if we run as a team and do exactly what Vanhoy told us to do, we will be fine. It was something that I had never experienced before. At mid-race I looked around me and I saw all of my teammates there and I was like, 'we're gonna get it boys.'"
On how it feels to be a part of the breakthrough team…
"I definitely was way too excited. I know that the guys have been trying to get it, and they always fell just short. To be a part of the team that actually makes me realize how hard they worked for it and how big of an opportunity that it was for them. I am pretty thankful that we actually got to get it and tell the old guys that we got it."
On future goals…
Right now, the goals are set to just improve and do a little bit better than what we are expected to do. We are ranked like ninth at FloTrack and obviously the goal for this year is to be around top-10. For the following years, knowing that most of the guys on going to come back for the next few years, obviously the goal is going to be higher and for next year it is going to be top-five, and the year after we all are talking about winning the national championship."
For more information on Ole Miss Track & Field and Cross Country, follow the Rebels on Twitter (@OleMissTrack), Facebook and Instagram.
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