Cross Country Heads To Conference Championships

American Athletic Conference Cross Country Championships Web Coverage

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The University of Memphis cross country squads travel to Philadelphia, Pa., to run in the 2017 American Athletic Conference Championships Saturday.

Saturday's races in Philadelphia are only the second time in program history Memphis competes in the Northeast. The Tigers ran in the inaugural American Athletic Conference Championships in Madison, Conn., in 2013. The men placed third and the women seventh at the 2013 event.

American Athletic Conference Championships/Philadelphia, Pa.

Time (CT)	Race	Distance
9 a.m.	Men	8k
9:50 a.m.	Women	6k

Head coach Kevin Robinson comments
(Looking back at Oct. 13 Crimson Classic)
"We were short two guys for our race at Alabama two weeks ago, so for those that ran to step up, I was proud of them. Our top-four ran a strong race. Considering all we were battling, we did a pretty good job on the men's side. The women's squad is beginning to perform better and also compete better. I feel like we've done what we needed to do during the regular season. Now, it's time to march forward to the conference postseason and see how we match up."

(On this weekend's league championships)
"At this point of the season, the work has been done. We're now trying to stay sharp and rested. We're also trying not to get sick or injured. We've done the ground work. Now, let's get to the races and compete. We've got a good group of kids, and they're prepared. It's difficult to predict what's going to happen at the championships. For both teams, if we go in and perform to what we're capable of, then we should perform pretty well.

"From what I've seen on maps and heard from others, this course is pretty challenging. It's unlike any terrain that we've run on in this area during the season. Running at Alabama two weeks ago – whose course has several hills – helped prepare us for what we will see in Philadelphia Saturday."

Tigers' Finishes In American Athletic Conference Championships

Year	Men	Women
2016	6^th	3^rd
2015	9^th	6^th
2014	5^th	7^th
2013	3^rd	7^th

Tigers Tidbits

In addition to being only the second time the Tigers are running in the Northeast, it also is the first time Memphis is competing in Philadelphia.
In its history, the men's program has six top-three team finishes. Memphis won the Metro Conference title in 1976 and also had top-three performances in 1977 (3^rd), 1979 (3^rd), 1980 (3^rd), 1985 (3^rd) and 2013 (3^rd).
Last season, the Tigers women's squad posted its best finish in program history. Memphis placed third at the 2016 event. Before last season, the Tigers' top finishes were third-place performances in 1985 and 1986 (both Metro Conference).
Arnica Zitting is the Tigers' highest-returning finisher from the 2016 conference championships. She placed 16^th and just missed earning all-league honors.
Zitting also ran a 6k personal-best time of 21:26.3 at last year's league championships.
Bailey Kennemer is the squad's second-highest returning finisher from last year's conference race. She placed 32^nd in a 6k personal-best time of 21:56.9.
Julian Sanchez-Pinto (16^th) and Matthew Viveiros (26^th) are the Tigers' top-two returning finishers from the 2016 league championships. Sanchez-Pinto just missed earning all-conference honors.
Brock Ballard ran an 8k personal-best 25:50.6 at the 2015 American Athletic Conference Championships held in Greenville, N.C.

Up Next
The Tigers get an off-week from competition (Nov. 4) to prepare for the Nov. 10 NCAA South Region Championships in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Matthew Viveiros

University of Memphis Athletics