Wisconsin Badgers
NCAA Championships
Five things to know: The Big Dance
November 11, 2023 | Women's Cross Country
Wisconsin travels to Virginia for NCAA Championships
MADISON, Wis. – The No. 18 Wisconsin women's cross-country travels to Charlottesville, Virginia, to compete in the 2023 NCAA Championships on Saturday. The women's 6,000 meter race begins at 9:20 a.m. CT at Panorama Farms.
For fans heading to Virginia, tickets are $20 and include admission, parking at Fashion Square Mall and round-trip shuttle service to Panorama Farms. There is no on-site parking for the championship. All fans must take the shuttle service. Pre-event shuttles begin at 6:45 a.m. ET and run until 9:30 a.m. ET Returning shuttles begin at 11 a.m. ET and run until 1:30 p.m. ET
All tickets will be sold in advance online; no onsite sales will be available. Tickets to this event are limited and expected to sell out. Patrons are encouraged to purchase early.
Here are five things to know before Saturday's race.
1. THE BADGERS ARE BACK: The Badgers return to compete on the national stage, last season UW took 19th at the competition with 494 points. UW is returning to the championship race with graduate students Vivian Hacker and Alexa Westly, who finished 160th and 171st overall in 21 minutes, 0.9 seconds and 21:05.9, respectively. The Badgers are adding new faces to their big dance lineup, as Leane Willemse, who has led the Badgers most of the season, will compete in her first NCAA Championships race.
2. LAST TIME OUT: Last weekend, the Badgers showed their dominance at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional as they came in second as a team scoring 71 points. Leane Willemse led the Badgers, crossing the finish line in 20:18.3 for a fifth-place finish. Alexa Westley continued her strong season, crossing in 20:44.7 for 13th place, Danielle Orie followed right behind Westley in 20:46.0. Junior Kylie Finger placed 16th in 20:51.6, while freshman Isabella Jacobsen took 23rd in 21:00.6.
3. THE COMPETITION: The Badgers have faced up against many of the 31 teams competing in this year's NCAA championship, out of all of the teams that qualified 20 of them competed alongside the Badgers at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational Presented by Under Armour. The Badgers took 16th overall at that race, showing how strong of a team they are, and will look to do the same this weekend.
4. HONOREES: Awards keep coming for the Badgers as Willemse, Westley, Orie, Finger, Jacobsen, and Hacker earned 2023 All-Region honors after their top-25 finishes last weekend at the Great Lakes Regional.
5. FOLLOW ALONG: The championship race will be streamed live on ESPNU, and live results will be accessible through PTTiming. Fans can also follow @BadgertrackXC across all platforms in addition to reading recaps that will be posted on UWBadgers.com
