EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Senior Curt Eckstein and junior Emma Tate earned All-Region honors as the Purdue men’s and women’s cross country teams each finished ninth at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional Cross Country Championships in Evansville, Indiana, on Friday.
Eckstein was 14th overall on the 10k men’s course, and Tate finished 25th in the 6k women’s event. Each were recognized on the All-Region team, Eckstein for the fourth time in his career and Tate for the first time. Tate is the first Boilermaker woman to earn the honor since 2017.
As a team, the men were ninth with 221 points, as the top five finishers placed in the top 55. The women also were ninth, with 226 points, as four runners placed in the top 51.
“The women put themselves up there and competed with a lot of resilience the whole race,” Purdue coach John Oliver said. “It’s a young team that has grown together and individually throughout the season. The men had a tough last couple of kilometers, and that’s definitely an item we want to improve upon and make our strength for the future. Every race is an opportunity for growth. We will take this one as the past ones and look to improve.
“For the potential for Curt and Emma Tate to make the national meet individually is a testament to their hard work and dedication. We will be watching the selection show tomorrow at 5 pm with excitement.”
The NCAA Selection Show is set for Saturday, November 13, at 5 p.m. ET, on NCAA.com. Qualifying teams and individual runners for the 2021 NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Championships will be announced, with the championship meet set for Saturday, November 20, in Tallahassee, Florida.
On Friday afternoon in Evansville, Eckstein was 14th overall in 30:07.1. With a career-best 10k time, he finished less than 1.50 seconds ahead of the next two fastest finishers to secure 14th place. The senior moved up four spots in the final 4,000 meters to earn his second-best Great Lakes finish.
Tate ran the 6k course in 20.29.8 to earn a top-25 finish by 4.0 seconds. Her final 2,000 meters saw her move up five places to secure the 25th-place showing, and her 6k time is a personal-best by more…
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