Meadowdale alum Crichlow to compete in NCAA cross country championships Saturday

Matthew Crichlow
Matthew Crichlow

Former Meadowdale High School cross country standout Matthew Crichlow, who now competes for the Gonzaga University men’s cross country team, has qualified for the 2015 NCAA Div. I National Championships as a redshirt senior.

Crichlow becomes the first Gonzaga men’s qualifier in the school’s history. The Bulldog women’s cross country team also qualified, the first time a Gonzaga women’s team has ever made the NCAA Cross Country Championships,

The University of Louisville will host the championships, Saturday, Nov. 21, at Tom Sawyer State Park located in Louisville, Ky. The women’s race will begin at 9 a.m. Pacific Time, followed by the men’s race at approximately 10 a.m. Pacific Time. A live webcast of the championships will be broadcast from 9 a.m. Pacific Time until the conclusion of the awards ceremony on NCAA.com.

To be eligible to participate in the championships, teams and individuals qualified in their respective NCAA regional competitions. The top two, seven-person teams automatically qualified from each of the nine regions, for a total of 18 teams. Thirteen additional teams were selected at-large. Gonzaga joins Mississippi State and Utah as first-timers in the 31-team field.

“Simply wow,” Director of GU Cross Country and Track Pat Tyson said. “Our first-ever cross country team to the NCAA’s, and Crichlow our first-ever men’s harrier at the NCAA’s, this is so great for GUXC nation! I am on fire right now!”

Also last Friday at regionals, Crichlow’s 18th place finish was the best for the Zags in the past 20 years. The 2010 Meadowdale graduate crossed the line at 31:30.3. His time is the 12th-fastest in program history on a 10,000-meter course.

“Today has been surreal,” Crichlow said. “There’s no doubt in my mind we have the best coaches in America, and this program is going places. I’m so incredibly proud of both the men’s and women’s team and we still have work to do in Louisville!”

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