Missouri cross country prepares to lace up its shoes for the NCAA Midwest Regional Championship Friday, Nov. 13 in Ames, Iowa. The women’s six-kilometer race will begin at 11 a.m., while the men’s 10-kilometer race follows right after at Noon CST.
“We kind of put our money where our mouth is, and now it’s just a little bit more like, ‘Hey, we know what we’re doing, and what we’ve known about ourselves,’” assistant coach Kyle Levermore said. “We were able to put it together in a way where we could
back up our talk a little bit.”
The meet features runners from 36 different teams, with top contenders such as Oklahoma State, Iowa State, Minnesota and Northwestern set to race. Most importantly, the top two teams in each race earn automatic qualification for the NCAA Championships on Saturday, Nov. 21.
Alongside this, 32 teams per gender make it to the national meet, and the top seven individual runners from each region who are not part of a qualifying team also advance to the national championships.
Getting a feel for race day
With the Tigers having already run at the Iowa State Cross Country Course during the first meet of the season at the Cyclone Opener, preparations have already been made.
“It was way less about our actual team performance and more about just getting a feel for being in Ames, being up there pre-race,” Levermore said. “So yeah, I expect it to ease their mind, because we’ll get up there, and they’ll kind of know what to expect.”
Although they have already raced at the course this year, the Tigers are faced with much different weather conditions. Friday’s race is set to be in the low 20s and high 30s during the day, while it was in the 50s in September.
SEC Championships recap
The Tigers stood out during the SEC Championships, taking fourth overall on both the men’s and women’s side.
Monica Wanjiku claimed All-SEC First Team Honors, with her seventh-place finish and new personal best time of 19:05.2. Alongside her, Kobi Walker took 17th overall, with her new personal best of 19:27.2 to achieve Third Team All-SEC Honors.
On the men’s side, Jean Kipchumba earned All-SEC Second Team, with his eighth-place finish of 22:32.2. His time was notably the fastest 8K ever run by a Tiger at Gans Creek and at an SEC Championship.
With memorable results during the first meet of the postseason, regionals provides yet another chance for the Tigers to show off their talent on a national stage.
Tigers’ roster development
Beyond team strategy, the Tigers’ postseason success has been fueled by individual growth across both squads throughout the year.
On the women’s side, Walker has emerged as a major factor, cutting 30 seconds off her time at Gans Creek this season to earn her SEC honors. Suzy Lecoutre has provided steady consistency, remaining a fixture in Missouri’s top five.
“We really love to see how in our top five, each of our women could be anywhere from first to second,” assistant coach Paige Duca said. “Just really excited to see each of these athletes continue to progress week after week with momentum.”
Meanwhile, senior Rahel Broemmel has continued her steady rise since joining the program, giving the Tigers elite depth upfront where any runner in their lead pack can step into a top finish on a given day.
Alongside Broemmel is the long-term arc of Charlotte Cullen, whose persistence over the last two years culminated in a pivotal performance at the SEC Championships.
“Where [Charlotte’s] been and what she’s done over the last two years, and the curveball she’s been thrown in that time, the way she’s just continued to stick with it,” Levermore said. “We would not have been fourth without her, two weeks ago.”
On the men’s side, steady progression from in-state talent has anchored the squad. Tyler Freiner and Joshua Allison have built consistent improvements year over year, with Allison making significant strides in adapting to cross country alongside his track resume.
“Tyler, his development over the last four years that I’ve been here, it’ll be four by the end of this year, from where he was in high school to where he is now,” Levermore said. “Same with Joshua Allison, just really really consistent, steady improvement over the years, and I’m not surprised that all those guys are really diligent.”
Managing the postseason taper and 10K distance
As the postseason reaches its peak, the coaching staff has intentionally dialed back training volume to ensure the runners arrive in Ames at peak physical condition. Rather than grinding through heavy training blocks, the focus has shifted entirely to sharpness, rest and race execution.
The meet also introduces a strategic distance shift for the men’s team, stepping up from the eight-kilometer distance to a 10K layout. Despite the longer, grueling distance, the coaching staff views the shift in a strong light.
“I actually think 10K cross country is easier than 8K,” Levermore said. “8K kind of becomes like a 5K really quickly, where with 10K there’s a bit more rhythm, a bit more flow, and a natural build. The jump is more psychological than physical. It’s the people that can embrace that they get better the longer it gets that start to flourish.”
With both squads peaking at the right time following strong SEC Championship outings, Mizzou enters Friday’s regional looking for potential tickets to the national championships.
To read more about Missouri’s cross country team, follow@Rock MNation and@SophBleedsLA on twitter/X. Photos are courtesy of Mizzou TFXC photographer Dan Murphy at@danmurphmedia on Instagram.
