ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Coming off of a sweep of Patriot League Team Championships on Oct. 31, the Navy men's and women's cross country programs will be back in postseason action this Friday with the running of the 2021 NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championship. Hosted by Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa., the women will be first on the 6k Goodman Campus Cross Country Course on Friday as the Mids are one of 30 teams in the 12 p.m. race. One hour later at 1 p.m., the men will be competing amongst a field of 28 teams in a 10k race. Both programs will be focused on securing one of the top-two qualifying positions in the national NCAA Championship meet on Saturday, November 20 in Tallahassee, Florida.

Should a team not nab one of the two automatic bids, there are also a limited number of at-large team selections and at-large individual selections that are determined following meets from across the NCAA Division I landscape. The top-four individuals from each regional not on a qualifying team are automatically are selected, while any other finisher in the top-25 is placed into the at-large national pool as a potential at-large individual.

Previously at the Goodman Cross Country Course in 2021
Both of Navy's teams have fond memories of competing at the Goodman Course as the 2021 Patriot League Championship was held at Lehigh's home course and saw the Midshipmen collect both the men's and women's league titles. The women were the first team in the victory circle at the league meet as Navy used a pack strategy and overtook Boston University over the second half of the race. Placing its five scoring runners in the top-12 within 14.7 seconds of each other, the Mids finished with 47 points versus 52 for the Terriers. Led by Elizabeth Sullivan and Ellie Abraham finishing just 0.3 seconds apart in seventh and eighth place, respectively, Navy won its fifth title in program history and first since 2012. Sullivan completed the 6k race with a time of 21:45.4, ahead of Abraham, who clocked in at 21:45.7. In the men's event, the Midshipmen were a force as they had five runners in the top-11 throughout the race before closing down the competition with six runners in the top-seven in the final standings. Navy's stout pack effort helped the Mids posted a team score of 20 points, the second-lowest in the history of the Patriot League Championship. Led by Miguel Mathias and Brett Brady finishing second and third, respectively, the Mids are now nine-time Patriot League champions. Mathias clocked in with a time of 25:06.4, while Brady clocked in at 25:13.7. 

Earlier in the regular season, both teams ran at the 2021 Paul Short Run on October 1. Racing on the 6k course at Lehigh's Goodman Complex as part of the collegiate gold competition, the women's team had all five of it scoring runners place amongst the top-108 in a field of 342 individuals to help the team place ninth overall. Elizabeth Sullivan took top individual honors for the Mids as she traversed the course in a time of 20:49.0 to finish in 37th place. In the ensuing men's race, the Mids were led by Brett Brady and three of his teammates finishing in the top-65 to finish with 311 cumulative team points, good for tenth in the 40-team field. Individually, Brady placed 26th of 357 competitors with an 8k time of 23:55.9.

Mid-Atlantic Women's Regional Championship (12 PM)
This will be the 16th time that the Mids have competed at the NCAA Regional Meet. The team's best finish during that span is seventh place at the 2008, 2011 and 2012 events. After the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the 2020 championship meet, the Mids most recently competed at the regional championship in 2019. Racing as one of 31 teams on the 6k Goodman Campus Cross Country Course at Lehigh, the Mids saw four of its runners finish in the top-90, including a team-best performance by then-junior Emily Craig, who posted a 31st-place result. As a team, Navy placed 12th with 378 points.

Navy is currently ranked seventh in the latest USTFCCCA Mid-Atlantic Regional Poll. This year's championship field includes all 15 teams that are ranked in the poll with Patriot League foes, Bucknell (11) and Lehigh (14) amongst those in that top-15. West Virginia, Georgetown and Villanova hold the top-three positions.

Last Five Mid-Atlantic Regionals
2019: 12th of 31
2018: 16th of 30
2017: 12th of 28
2016: 13th of 28
2015: 10th of 30

Mid-Atlantic Men's Regional Championship (1 PM)
Navy is in search of its 13th bid to the NCAA Championships as a team after finishing eighth at the 2019 Mid-Atlantic Regional. At the that meet on November 15 at Lehigh, then-senior team captain Jake Brophy turned in a near perfect performance to lead the Mids as he finished second overall to qualify for the NCAA Championship. As a team, the Mids placed eighth of 25 teams in the field.

Navy is currently ranked fourth in the latest USTFCCCA Mid-Atlantic Regional Poll. This year's championship field includes all 15 teams that are ranked in the poll with Patriot League foes Lafayette (10th), Lehigh (11th) and Bucknell (12th) amongst those in that top-15. Princeton, Georgetown and Villanova hold the top-three positions. 

Last Five Mid-Atlantic Regionals
2019: 8th of 25
2018: 8th of 24
2017: 2nd of 26
2016: 2nd of 22
2015: 6th of 25