Gators Ready for Wisconsin Adidas Invitational; 41 Nationally-Ranked Teams Expected to Compete
Thursday, October 16, 2014 | Cross Country
Season Stats (M) | Season Stats (W) | SEC Top Times
The Florida men's and women's cross country teams are set to run in one of the season's biggest and most competitive races Friday (Oct. 17) at the Wisconsin adidas Invitational in Madison, Wis.
Seventy-eight teams are set to compete at the sixth-annual event on the Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course. The women's 6K race is set to start at noon, followed by the men's 8K at 12:45 p.m.
Live results from the race will be available for the meet here, and Flotrack will be streaming races live, although viewers will need a Flotrack Pro account to watch.
PROJECTED RUNNERS
| Men | 8K Personal Best |
| Thomas Howell | 24:45.76 (`14 MDI) |
| Mac Reynolds | 24:56.41 (`14 MDI) |
| David Kilgore | 24:18.00 (`12 SCBI) |
| Carlos Miranda | 24.55.40 (`13 SEC Championship) |
| Mark Mutz | 25:41.98 (`14 MDI) |
| Austin Decker | 25:36.23 (`14 MDI) |
| Elliot Clemente | 25:11.93 (`14 MDI) |
| Women | 6K Personal Best |
| Lauren Brasure | 20:27.00 (`14 Paul Short) |
| Becky Greene | 21:03.00 (`14 Paul Short) |
| Taylor Tubbs | 20:37.00 (`14 Paul Short) |
| Grace VanDeGrift | 21:21.00 (`14 Paul Short) |
| Devin McDermott | -- |
| Macy Huskey | 21:51.58 (`13 Regionals) |
| Amber Johnson | 22:02.00 (`14 Paul Short) |
TOP-NOTCH COMPETITION
Seventy-eight teams are scheduled to compete Friday (38 men's teams, 40 women's teams). In addition, 41 of those squads appear in the USTFCCA National Rankings. On the men's side, there are 19 ranked teams in competition with No. 3 Northern Arizona entering as the highest-ranked school. On the women's side, 22 ranked teams are scheduled to run with No. 2 Michigan State entering as the highest-ranked team.
SEC SCHOOLS COMPETING
Including Florida, four Southeastern Conference schools will compete in the men's race, while five will compete on the women's side.
| Arkansas | Men & Women (No. 5) |
| Florida | Men & Women |
| Georgia | Men & Women |
| Texas A&M | Men & Women |
| Vanderbilt | Women (No. 27) |
HISTORY
Friday's race marks the fourth time that both squads have competed at the Wisconsin adidas Invitational. The 2010 men's and women's teams both finished in seventh place, which are the best finishes by either UF team at the invite in program history.
In 2010, then-junior Charlotte Browning took home first place with a time of 20:14.00. The top finish by a men's runner came in 2010 as well, as then-junior Dumisani Hlaselo finished seventh in a time of 23:46.00. Then-senior Mark Parrish ran the fastest time by a Gator male at the Wisconsin adidas Invitational in 2013, clocking 23:34.00, which set UF's 8K school record.
FAST TIMES, FAST COURSE
During the three years that the Gators have competed at the Wisconsin adidas Invitational, three of the top men's 8K times in program history have been run and two of the top women's 6K times have been run.
IN THE POLLS
In the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association regional rankings, the Gator women jumped four spots from No. 8 to No. 4 in the South Region. On the men's side, the Gators stand firmly planted at No. 3.
SPANGLER SPEAKS
“The [Wisconsin adidas Invitational] is a great meet, and arguably the most competitive meet in the country outside of the NCAA Championships. It's a great opportunity for both our men and women to go up there and compete and see where we stand with some of the best teams in the country, and gain some at-large points, hopefully, and come away with certainly some PRs on a very, very fast course.”
-Florida assistant track and cross country coach Paul Spangler
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