By
Jeff Lund
Arizona Daily Wildcat
A national champion will be crowned today in Ames, Iowa, and the UA men's and women's cross country teams will be racing for that crown.
After a successful season for both teams, there is only one more hurdle left: the national title.
"When you get both teams to the national championships, it says a lot about your program," UA head coach Dave Murray said.
Junior Tom Prindiville - the UA men's top runner, has steadily worked his way to the forefront of a deep men's team, one that is primed for a high placing individually and as a team.
The UA men, who are now ranked No. 8 nationally, have their sight set on a top-five finish. After giving second-ranked Stanford all it could handle last week at the West Regional, the Wildcat men seemingly proved that they could run with any of the country's top teams.
UA junior Steve Smith finished fifth at the West Regionals last week in Fresno, Calif., while senior Rick Weiss is coming off his best race of the year.
"We're starting to see what we are capable of," Prindiville said.
Last week, the top five UA men's finishers were all within 37 seconds of each other. Murray is confident that if the a tight finish today could lead to a high finish.
The women are also coming off an impressive performance despite battles with sickness and injury.
Junior Tara Chaplin will attempt to return to her championship form after running with the flu at the West Regionals last week. Murray said that the women should succeed if they stay healthy.
"We should be ready for nationals," Murray said.
The No. 10 Wildcat women's team has relied on its depth throughout the season. Last week was no different, as junior Jennifer Burris stepped up to help carry a team decimated by an illness to Chaplin.
After running on an average level for most of the season, Burris has risen to the occasion and will be looked upon to keep up with the top runners in the country, Murray said.
"I just want to beat ASU," Burris said. "We would like to finish in the top 4. That's not close to our ranking, but it is a goal."
The women's race is at 11 this morning, followed by the men's race at 12. Race time temperature in Iowa is expected to be below freezing.
