SACRAMENTO — The Arizona Cross Country program heads to Northern California on Friday for the 2025 NCAA West Regional, hosted by Sacramento State at Haggin Oaks Golf Course.
The women's 6k will begin at 10 a.m. MST, followed by the men's 10k at 11 a.m. MST.
Arizona enters postseason weekend with momentum after strong team and individual performances at the Big 12 Championships, where a pair of freshmen—Evans Tanui and Praise Chepkemoi—once again led the Wildcats. Both squads now look to close out the fall with their best race of the season in a deep and competitive West Region.
"This meet serves as a culmination of a good first fall," Associate Head Coach Jay Koloseus said. "We hope to continue to place better than last year and better than we are expected to here in Sacramento. With such a young team, I hope we can continue to turn heads and possibly get an athlete or two in the All-West Regional selection."
Arizona's NCAA West Regional Lineup
Men
• Evans Tanui
• Lawi Ngetich
• Bryson Nielsen
• Michael Urbanski
• Max Liao
• Kai Espinosa Gonzalez
Women
• Praise Chepkemoi
• Laina Friedmann
• Amelia North
• Kara Mickelson
• Hailey Puklin
• Dunja Sikima
Last Time Out – Big 12 Championships
At the conference meet in Lawrence, freshman Evans Tanui once again set the tone for the men, placing 28th overall in 23:48.0. He was followed by Lawi Ngetich (24:29.3) and Michael Urbanski (24:39.5), with freshmen Bryson Nielsen and sophomore Max Liao rounding out the scoring five. The Wildcats placed eighth as a team with 214 points in one of the strongest leagues in the nation.
Freshman Praise Chepkemoi led the Arizona women in the 6k with a time of 21:37.2, followed by freshman Amelia North (22:24.5) and Kara Mickelson (22:41.5). Laina Friedmann and Hailey Puklin completed Arizona's scoring five. The women finished 15th overall.
NCAA Advancement Structure
The top two teams on both the men's and women's sides will automatically qualify for the 2025 NCAA Cross Country Championships. An additional 13 teams nationwide will earn at-large bids. Individuals may also secure championship berths by placing in the top 25 overall and finishing among the top four athletes not on an advancing team.
Live results for the 2025 NCAA West Regional can be found here.
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