The NCAA Championships Committee for Track and Field/Cross Country has voted to approve Missouri State University’s bid to host the 2009 NCAA Midwest Region Cross Country Championship in Springfield, MSU director of athletics Bill Rowe announced Friday. The event will be held Nov. 14, 2009, at the Missouri State Cross Country Facility at Springfield Underground and will feature participants from 33 men’s and women’s Division I cross country programs from throughout the midwest.
The region’s coaches voted to recommend Missouri State’s bid for the 2009 meet at this year’s the NCAA Midwest Region Championship in Peoria, Ill., in November. One week later at the national meet, the NCAA Championships Committee carried out the coaches’ recommendation to bring the regional to Springfield.
"We’re honored that Missouri State University will have the opportunity to bring the regional meet to Springfield and add another chapter to our long history of hosting NCAA championship events in southwest Missouri," Rowe said. "This serves as a high compliment to our facility and the efforts of cross country head coach Greg Hipp, track and field head coach Ronald Boyce and special assistant to the director of athletics Bill O’Neill, who worked hard to put this bid together, as well as the generosity of the Griesemer family, who made our vision of a new cross country facility come to fruition."
Missouri State began developing its new facility last fall on land provided by the Griesemer family and Springfield Underground, Inc. Located at the northeast corner of Division Street and US-65, the Bears’ new home venue features an all-grass loop style layout with routes for every common race distance from 5K to 12K. With a starting line wide enough for 40 teams, an over 600-meter straightaway before the first turn, and a running path that is at least 15 meters wide throughout, the course meets, and in most cases exceeds, all NCAA championship standards.
As one of nine regional championships held nationally at the Division-I level, Springfield will host programs from the states of Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota. The Midwest Region includes schools from 10 conferences, including the Atlantic10, Big 12, BIG EAST, Big Ten, Conference-USA, Horizon League, Mid-American, Missouri Valley, Ohio Valley, and Summit League, as well as one D-I Independent. In addition to the Midwest Region Championship determining the top regional teams, the event also serves as the first round of the NCAA Championships, as the top two teams and top four individuals not on a qualifying team automatically advance to the national championship. Additional teams and individuals are chosen through an at-large process following the regional competition.
The 2009 meet will be the fourth regional hosted by the Bears and the city of Springfield since Missouri State’s move to Division I status in 1982. MSU hosted Region V championships in 1984, 1990 and 1994, as well as the 1974 and 1976 Division II national championships.
