Hokie ClubSara Freix received an at-large berth to the 2019 NCAA Cross Country Championships and will join the Virginia Tech men's cross country team at the event, as the NCAA selection committee announced the field for the upcoming championship meet to be held in Terre Haute, Indiana on Saturday.
Freix, a senior from Centreville, Virginia, was one of 38 individuals chosen for the women's race through an at-large selection process. She finished seventh in the women's 6K race at Friday's NCAA Southeast Regional held at Panorama Farms just outside of Charlottesville, Virginia. She was coming off a second-place finish at the ACC Championships on Nov. 1, and then she ran the regional race in a career-best time of 20 minutes, 14.5 seconds.
"Sara is very deserving of a national qualifying spot as an individual," Tech distance coach Eric Johannigmeier said. "After just missing as an individual last year, she's ready to go out and prove she can run with the best in the country over 6K. Sara's improved significantly over the past four years, and I'm looking forward to watching her race again in Terre Haute."
The Virginia Tech men's team had secured an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships with its second-place finish at the NCAA Southeast Regional on Friday. Peter Seufer led the way for the men's team, winning the 10K race, and both Fitsum Seyoum and Diego Zarate also finished in the top 25, giving the men's squad three all-region runners. Seufer earned all-region honors for the third time in his career, while the recognition marked the first of their careers for Seyoum and Zarate.
Seufer, a redshirt senior from Lynchburg, Virginia, won the ACC title, blowing away the field in the 8K race at the league's championship meet. He competed at last year's NCAA Championships as an individual, and he came in 16th, earning All-America honors.
The Tech men's team will be making its eighth NCAA Championships appearance and its third since 2015. The Hokies are one of six ACC teams in the field, joining automatic qualifiers Virginia, Notre Dame and Syracuse, and at-large selections NC State and Florida State.
"I'm very excited about the men's team qualifying for nationals," Johannigmeier said. "This will be their third appearance in the last five years as a team, and it's a special group that's worked hard for the opportunity. I know they're excited to race later this week and have their best performance at the championship meet."
The NCAA Championships will be held Saturday at the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course located in Terre Haute. The women's race will begin at 11:15 a.m. EST, followed by the men's race at 12:15 p.m. EST.