University of Illinois
NCAA Championships
Jon Davis Readies for NCAA XC Championships on Saturday
November 16, 2017 | Men's Cross Country
Illini sophomore races at 10:45 a.m. CT
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois sophomore Jon Davis will compete Saturday, November 18, at NCAA Cross Country Championships in Louisville, Kentucky. The Midwest Regional Champion will compete in the 10,000-meter final at 9 a.m. central time, 10 a.m. local time, at E.P. Tom Sawyer State Park.
| NCAA Cross Country Championships | |
|---|---|
| When | Saturday, November 18 |
| Where | E.P. 'Tom' Sawyer State Park // Louisville, Ky. |
| Meet Information | Live Results | Live Stream ($) | Championship Central | Men's 10K Map | Spectator Info |
| Men's Team Information | Meet Notes | Performance Lists | Media Guide | Quick Facts |
| Social Media | @IlliniMXC @IlliniWXC  | #Illini | @Illinimxc @illiniwxc  | Facebook  | YouTube  |
One of six individual at-large qualifiers from the Midwest Region, Davis earned an automatic bid to the national meet by winning the regional 10,000-meter race with a personal-best time of 29:06.2. The time edged Oklahoma State's Hassan Abdi's by five seconds to become the first Illini men's runner to win the meet since Trent Hoerr in 2007.
On Tuesday, Davis was named the 2017 USTFCCCA Midwest Region Athlete of the Year. It's the second time an Illinois men's athlete has won the award joining Hoerr after his 2007 regional title.
The Fithian, Illinois native will be making his second straight appearance at NCAA Cross Country Championships, marking the third straight year the Illini have sent at least one individual to NCAA Championships. Davis helped the Orange and Blue place 23rd as a team last season with an 80th place finish that ranked fifth among freshmen. Former Illini Dylan Lafond earned All-America honors in 2015.
The reigning Big Ten Track and Field Freshman of the Year, Davis has been Illinois' top runner in all-but-one race this year, the Coast-to-Coast Battle in Beantown in which Davis placed runner-up to teammate Jesse Reiser, for Coach Stewart's squad. Running against individuals from 20 ranked teams at Wisconsin in mid-October, Davis placed sixth overall, and then earned his first cross country All-Big Ten honor two weeks later when he placed ninth at Big Ten Championships.
NCAA Championships on Saturday, November 18, will begin with the women's race at 9:45 a.m. central time, followed by the men's race at 10:45 a.m. The meet can also be streamed online with a subscription to FloTrack with live results provided through Record Timing.
For complete coverage of Fighting Illini cross country, visit FightingIllini.com, follow the Illini on Twitter (@IlliniMXC) and Instagram (@IlliniMXC) and like Fighting Illini Men's Cross Country on Facebook.
