Meet Notes

The Basics
           • The Shockers send a host of quality runners to Terre Haute, Indiana, for Pre-Nationals. This meet is hosted every year by the school who is hosting the NCAA Cross Country Championships. Indiana State is the host this year.
           • On the women's side, Winny Koskei is coming off a 13th-place performance at the Bille Dellinger Invitational. She proved in Oregon that she will once again be gunning for All-American status.
           • Rebekah Topham has been dealing with injury, but has still shown why she is an All-American. The 2019 Steeplechase All-American placed 39th out of 138 runners at the Bill Dellinger Invitational.
           • For the Shocker men, Ben Flowers showed improvement throughout the race. Flowers finished the race in 37th, but made his way 40 spots up the field throughout the course of the race.
           • Behind Flowers, two pairs of Shocker finished close to one another. Zack Penrod and Ethan Kossover finished back-to-back in 78th and 79th. Jed Helker and Adam Moore also finished in close proximity in 89th and 91st.
           • This meet gives Wichita State the chance to see the national championship course and test their strength against nationally ranked teams.
 
FOLLOW THE MEET
            Fans can follow along on Twitter at @GoShockersTFXC for updates. A recap will be posted to GoShockers.com as well as full PDF results. Live results can be found at pttiming.com.
 
Meet Schedule
            Both Wichita State squads have been placed in the Blue races. The women's Blue 6K race kicks off at 10 a.m. Central time. The men's Blue 8K starts at 10:35 a.m. Central time.
 
Last Time Out
           • The Shockers sent a group of young athletes to Hays for the FHSU Tiger Open.
           • The men's squad took eighth place and the women's team did not have enough athletes to earn a team score.
           • Josh Klein led the way for the Shocker men. He finished the race in 18th in 25:19.1. 
           • Coach Hunter said it was a learning experience for the young guys on his team.
           • "The rest of the guys are figuring it out," Hunter said. "It's about learning, and they've got a good chance to improve from this."
           • Erin Topham and McKenna Paintin were out front for the Shocker women. Topham finished the race in 19:01.4, which was good enough for a 24th-place finish. Paintin competed well coming off injury. She clocked in at 19:22.8, which put her at 33rd on the results list.
 
Coach Hunter on the Meet
"Every time we get into this time of the year, we get a lot done in terms of knowing we're at and where a lot of other teams are at. After the weekend, we're obviously going to focus on conference, but it's a great indicator of where we stand. I take the entire year and I can evaluate what's happening (with other teams) unless they're hiding someone. Having the chance to run this week is also a chance to qualify for the national meet. If we don't go to these meets like Oregon or Pre-Nats, we don't have much of a chance in this system to make it. We're thankful to have the opportunity. The experience is going to be invaluable when we get to the regional meet."
 
On team dynamics
"(They) obviously (enjoy each other's company). Both the guys and girls teams. It's very obvious to me in practice. I think if you just listen to the athletes and what they have to say, I'm surrounded by people (who are good people). That's why our team has been improving. We've had a great culture over the course of the past few years."
 
Koskei Keeps Kicking
           • Winny Koskei is again leading the way for the Shocker women this season.
           • The All-American has had two impressive races at the JK Gold Classic and the Bill Dellinger Invitational.
           • Koskei came out of JK Gold as the individual champion, dethroning fellow All-American Rebekah Topham. She won the race with a time of 13:48.5. Her performance led the Shocker women to a team victory as well.
           • In Oregon, Koskei showed she is still a force to be reckoned with on the national stage. She finished the first 6K of the season in 20:14.5 to finish the race in 13th place. The Bill Dellinger Invitational was packed with ranked teams and All-American contenders.
           • Koskei has proven she is back and ready to claim another All-America honor.
 
In Full Bloom
           • Ben Flowers has emerged as the leader for the Wichita State men's cross country squad in 2019.
           • Flowers started his year with an individual title at the JK Gold Classic. He won the race in 18:38.2. Flowers' performance was the high point of a great day for the Shocker men. Wichita State won the team title and put six in the top eight to claim the team title.
           • Flowers proved his performance wasn't a fluke when he ran at the Bill Dellinger Invitational. Flowers finished in 37th in a field full of ranked teams. He moved up a total of 40 spots throughout the race, and clocked in at 24:19.2 in his first 8K of 2019.
 
Shockers in the Rankings
           • The USTFCCCA Regional Rankings came out Oct. 7, and the Shockers stayed put.
           • The Shocker men came in at No. 10 in the Midwest Region.
           • The Shocker women were slotted at No. 8 and have been ranked for 12 consecutive weeks, including six straight in the top 10.