NEW YORK -- The fields for the 2026 NCAA Cross Country Championships are set and four BIG EAST teams and four individual athletes will compete in the national championship race, held on Saturday, Nov. 21 at the LaVern Gibson Championship course in Terre Haute, Ind.

The women's six-kilometer championship is set to start at 10:20 a.m. ET, followed by the men's 10-kilometer championship at 11:10 a.m. ET.  The 2026 NCAA Cross Country Championships will air live on ESPNU (Watch Live).

On the men's side, Villanova and Georgetown earned automatic bids into the field, based on their 1-2 team finish at the Mid-Atlantic regional championship this past weekend.  The Wildcats placed three runners among the top five, led by Bailey Habler - the 2026 BIG EAST men's individual XC champion.  Habler took first place at regionals, clocking 29:47.7 for the 10-kilometer race.  Teammate CJ Sullivan finished less than two seconds behind, crossing the line in second place in a time of 29:49.5, while Thomas McMahon was fifth in a time of 29:54.0.  It marks the 39th trip to NCAA's for Villanova - and the fourth appearance in the last five seasons. 

Georgetown placed second as a team, with a pack of four Hoyas capturing ninth through 12th place - Joe O'Brien (9th, 29:57.8), Quinn Parrish (10th, 29:57.9), Luke Ondracek (11th, 29:57.9), and Birhanu Harriman (12th, 29:58.0).  Daniel Winter rounded out the Hoyas scorers in 14th place (29:58.4).  It is the Hoyas' second straight trip to the NCAA XC Championship.

Butler earned an at-large bid to the 2026 NCAA Cross Country championship.  The Bulldogs placed fourth at the Great Lakes regional, led by a gold-medal performance from William Zegarski.  The graduate student crossed the finish line in first place, clocking 29:55.0.  Zegarski was the 2025 BIG EAST individual champion and 2026 conference runner-up.  As a team, Butler placed fifth overall, behind auto qualifiers Toledo and Notre Dame and at-large invites Michigan State and Wisconsin.  It marks the seventh NCAA XC appearance for Butler; the Dawgs are one of 11 men's cross country teams to accomplish the feat.

For the women, Providence qualified automatically after its second place finish in the Northeast regional championship.  The Friars will be making their sixth straight - and 34th overall - trip to nationals.  Anna Gardiner led the way for Providence at regionals, placing fourth overall in a time of 20:03.8 at Bethpage State Park in Bethpage, N.Y.  She was one of four Friars to finish among the top 11, joined by Gabby Schmidt (20:13.5) and Kate Currie (20:14.8) in eighth and ninth place, respectively.  Emily Bush (20:15.9) finished in 11th place.  

In the Mid-Atlantic region, three BIG EAST standouts qualified individually for the NCAA Women's Cross Country Championship.  Barrett Justema of Georgetown - the 2026 BIG EAST individual champion - was fifth overall, clocking a time of 19:25.7.  The Villanova duo of Rosemary Shay (seventh, 19:36.1) and Tilly O'Connor (eighth, 19:51.7), each earned spots in the field.  In the Northeast, UConn's Sascha Letica finished sixth overall (20:07.2) and qualified for the national championship race as an individual. 

The field for the NCAA Cross Country Championships are determined by auto-bid and at-large selections.  The top two teams in each Regional secure automatic bids to the championship. If a team doesn't secure an automatic bid, the NCAA DI Cross Country Subcommittee completes the field with at-large teams.  Individually, the first four regional finishers not from an automatic qualifying or at-large team also secure an auto-bid to the championships.