The Tigers are gearing up for the NCAA Midwest Championships this Friday, Nov. 14, at the Greiner Family OSU Cross Country Course in Stillwater, Okla. The women’s race begins at 10:30 a.m., followed by
the men’s race at 11:30 a.m.
Mizzou History With the Course
This course previously hosted the Tigers in 2023 for the NCAA Midwest Championship, where many of the team’s graduating and returning runners competed. Austin Popplewell led the way with a 57th-place finish, followed by Drew Rogers in 66th. Ryder James also represented the Tigers, placing 119th in the field. While none of the University’s current women’s racers have competed on this course yet, the men’s team finished 11th overall, and the women placed 12th at the meet.
“Largely, it doesn’t help us, but in some way, I think it actually really does help us that we don’t have a prior perception of the course,” coach Kyle Levermore said.
Course Facts
The Greiner Family Course is named in honor of Don and Shellie Greiner and went through a multi-million-dollar renovation ahead of the 2022 NCAA National Championship races. Originally unveiled in 2019, the course serves as the home of Oklahoma State’s men’s and women’s cross-country teams. The course was designed to be sustainable and is meant to withstand extreme temperatures and conditions.
“We’ve done lots of work on hills,” Levermore said. “We’ve broken down courses tactically. We’ve mimicked stuff out of Gans that Oklahoma State’s got a lot of long, steep uphills and short, quick uphills, so just being familiar with it and then trying to replicate it in training.”
Men’s Accomplishments
The Tiger men have had strong performances throughout the season, highlighted by multiple top team finishes. They opened the year with a first-place finish at the Mizzou Opener and followed it up later in the season with a runner-up showing at the Pre-National Invitational.
Leading the way has been Elijah Limo, who placed 14th at the Pre-National Invitational and finished second at the Greeno Dirksen Invitational during his cross country debut. Alongside him, Drew Rogers has also been a consistent performer, winning the season-opening meet and finishing 48th at the Gans Creek Classic.
“Someone like Drew, he’s so different than he was two years ago,” Levermore said. “I think, if anything, it probably just motivates him a little bit. The course is hard, it’s challenging. It’s got some good hills, but we’ve prepared all year for the demands of competition.”
Continuing on the Tigers’ depth, James earned a fifth-place finish at the Greeno Dirksen Invitational, while Raymond Kipkoech added top-10 finishes with a seventh-place result at the Mizzou Opener and a ninth-place showing at Greeno Dirksen. On top of that, Popplewell placed No.24 at the SEC Championship.
“I think Austin Popplewell didn’t surprise me at the SEC championship, but I think that’s something that I’ve been waiting to see from him,” Levermore said. “I think I’ve seen moments of it, but I’ve been really waiting to see him step up like that in a big championship setting, so that was really good to see.”
Women’s Accomplishments
On the women’s side, several athletes have made impressive debuts for the Tigers, while returners have continued to build on their success. The team opened the season with a first-place finish at the Mizzou Opener and followed with a strong third-place showing at the Pre-National Invitational, marking steady progress throughout the fall.
Suzy Lecoutre has led the way, winning the Mizzou Opener and finishing 29th at the Gans Creek Classic. Monica Wanjiku has also been a consistent force, placing 11th at the Gans Creek Classic in her cross country debut and ninth at the Pre-National Invitational.
“I knew Susie would be a big, big piece, but obviously she’s been important for us, and then Miriam and Kobe have really developed since where they were in August, or where they are now, it’s pretty exciting,” Levermore said.
Adding to the team’s depth, Kobi Walker finished third at the Mizzou Opener and set a personal best of 20:25.6 at the Gans Creek Classic. Charlotte Cullen took sixth at the Mizzou Opener and placed third at the Greeno Dirksen Invitational, while Natalie Barnard earned fifth at the Mizzou Opener and eighth at Greeno Dirksen.
Looking Forward
The Tigers are now entering the final stretch of the season, and all eyes will be on their last meet of the year, the NCAA Championship on Saturday, Nov. 22, in Columbia, Mo. The women’s race is scheduled for 9:20 a.m., followed by the men’s at 10:10 a.m.
With postseason efforts ramping up, the Tigers will compete against a field that includes some of the top programs in the NCAA Southeastern Conference for cross country. According to Week 5 USTFCCCA Regional Rankings, on the men’s side, programs such as Oklahoma State and Iowa State dominate the conference-championship leaderboard. On the women’s side, the same two teams have set the standard in the SEC.
“On the women’s side, I think it kind of comes down to those four, Minnesota, Nebraska, maybe five, six, and then on the men’s side, I think Iowa State and Oklahoma State are obviously one two in the country, and then Oklahoma, us, Tulsa, Loyola,” Levermore said. “We’re all in a good position, but I feel like we are well prepared to go do what we need to do to get through.”
This championship meet represents an opportunity for the Tigers to close the season strong and see how they stack up comparative to the best in their conference and across the country.
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