GRINNELL, Iowa – The Carleton College men’s cross country team finished 13th out of 25 teams at the NCAA Central Regionals. Senior Charlie Gamble (San Diego, Calif./La Jolla) placed 11th and was later rewarded with an individual invitation to the NCAA Championships next Saturday. Gamble traversed the 8-kilometer course in 25:20.4.
“Charlie stayed patient and coming off being sick for the last couple of weeks and really ran well,” said Carleton head coach Dave Ricks. “He was sick for conference, so at that meet, he didn’t look as good as he really is. But he showed today what he’s capable of.”
A total of 32 teams advance to the national meet. That figure includes 16 automatic qualifiers—the top two finishing squads at the eight regional races—plus an additional 16 at-large bids. The top seven individual finishers in each of the region—from squads not qualifying for the national meet—also earn spots in the field at the national meet.
The University of St. Thomas and Nebraska Wesleyan secured the Central Region’s automatic qualifiers by finishing first and second, respectively. Because the finishers from those teams are removed from consideration for individual bids, Gamble is currently eighth on the chart for a trip to nationals.
Once St. Olaf College, which finished third in the team competition at the regional meet, received one of the 16 at-large bids, the Oles top finisher was also be taken off the list being considered for individual bids, moving Gamble into one of the top seven slots. This will be his second trip to the NCAA Championships. He helped Carleton finish 23rd as a team in 2007.
Junior John Davis (Eden Prairie, Minn.) was second across the line for Carleton, placing 54th overall.
Senior Blake Hansen (Seattle, Wash./Lakeside) completed his collegiate career with a 65th place finish, completing the course in 26:49. Colin Sinclair (Jr./Madison, Wis./West) posted a time of 27:06.7, good for 86th in the field of 173 racers.
“Blake and Colin had really good races,” said Ricks. “They stayed patient early and it paid off well for them.”
The 2009 national meet will be run on Saturday, Nov. 21 at Highland Hills Golf Course in Berea, Ohio, hosted by Baldwin-Wallace College. The women’s race will begin at 11 a.m. ET, and the men’s race will begin at Noon ET.