Nov. 18, 2011

NCAA Men’s Championship Page | NCAA Women’s Championship Page

CENTER VALLEY, Pa. — Navy senior Jess Palacio and Colgate junior Chris Johnson will travel to campus of Indiana State University for the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championship Monday in Terre Haute, Ind.

The men’s 10K race will start at 12:08 p.m. with the women’s 6K race following at 12:58 p.m. The NCAA Championships will be available for fans to watch free on NCAA.com. Links to the actual webcast will be posted on NCAA.com a few hours before the start time.

Both Patriot League runners are making their first appearance at the NCAA Championships.

Palacio, who won the League’s individual title on Oct. 29, earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships after her 12th-place finish at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regionals. Palacio is the second runner from Navy to represent the Patriot League at the NCAA Championships. Amy Watson was the first in 2008. Navy has had four other runners in its history compete at the NCAA Championships, but it was prior to Navy joining the Patriot League in cross country in 2003.

Palacio, a Sun Valley, Nev., native, was the first three-time First-Team All-Patriot League runner in Navy history. She won four races this season and has won a total of 11 in her career. Palacio also has been a key runner for the Navy track and field team, being named the Track Athlete of the Meet at both the 2011 Indoor and Outdoor Championships.

American’s Keira Carlstrom holds the League’s cross country record for appearances at the NCAAs (3) and has the League's best finish on the women's side. She placed 16th in 2003.

Johnson, who also won an individual title at the League Championships, earned an at-large bid with his 13th-place finish at the NCAA Northeast Regionals. Johnson, from Berkeley Heights, N.J., was a Second-Team All-League runner last season and rose up to be the League champion this season.

Johnson is the fourth men’s runner from Colgate to represent the Patriot League and the first since Michael Hanlon did it in 2005. Xavier de Boissezon ran at the 2003 Championships, and Ray Appenheimer was a two-time qualifier for Colgate in 1992-93, and his performance in 1993 when he placed seventh was a League-best.