NCAA West Regional
Date: Friday, Nov. 14
Event: 6K
Time: 9 a.m. (PST)
Location: Haggin Oaks Golf Complex - Sacramento, Calif.

IRVINE, Calif. - UC Irvine women's cross country heads to Sacramento for the NCAA West Regional on Friday, Nov. 14. The women's 6K race is scheduled for a 9 a.m. start at Haggin Oaks Golf Complex.

STARTING LINE
• UC Irvine is 13th in the latest USTFCCCA West Region Rankings.
• UCI took second at the Big West Championships on Oct. 31.
• Kaia Schmidt earned All-Big West honors with a fourth-place individual finish.
• The Anteaters also won the Vanguard Invitational (Sept. 5) and were third at the UC Riverside Invitational (Sept. 27).
• Schmidt (20:38.4) and Emma Hadley (20:47.6) both ran top-10 6K times in program history at Riverside.

REGIONAL RANKINGS
UC Irvine entered the USTFCCCA West Region Rankings at No. 15 on Sept. 29, and moved up one spot to No. 14 on Oct. 6. The Anteaters, who are one of four Big West schools among the top-15 in the West, rose again to No. 13 in the latest poll released on Nov. 3.

BIG WEST CHAMPIONSHIP RECAP
UC Irvine claimed runner-up honors at the Big West Championships in Honolulu on Oct. 31. Junior Kaia Schmidt led the Anteaters as she covered the 6K course in 21:13.2 to come in fourth overall. Schmidt stayed with the lead pack throughout the race, never dropping below sixth. She then made a push over the final 1K for a career-best individual conference finish. Schmidt earned All-Big West honors by way of her top-10 performance. It is the fifth-straight year an 'Eater has garnered all-conference distinction. 

Freshman Grace Baxter had an impressive Big West Championship debut, finishing 14th with a time of 21:50.8. Senior Makena Castillo was next across the line for UCI in 17th (21:56.0). Sophomore Liana Lee was also 19th at 21:59.7. Junior Emma Hadley was just outside the top-20, clocking in at 22:06.5 (21st), while sophomore Rachel Moen was right on her heels in 22nd (22:08.8).

DOUBLING DOWN
Kaia Schmidt took home a pair of Big West Athlete of the Week awards this season. On Oct. 14, Schmidt was recognized following a top-15 showing in a competitive Bill Dellinger Invitational field that featured seven regionally-ranked teams. For the second meet in a row, the West Linn, Oregon, native was the top Big West finisher, coming in 14th overall. She completed the 6K course at Pine Ridge Golf Club in 20:43.97. On Sept. 30, Schmidt earned her first career weekly honor after running a nearly eight-second 6K personal-record 20:38.4 to finish seventh out of 220 athletes at the UC Riverside Invitational. Her mark ranked second in The Big West at the time and moved her up one spot to No. 8 in program history.

PERFECT START
The Anteaters opened the season with a clean sweep at the Vanguard Invitational 5K on Sept. 5. They took the top-five spots for a perfect score of 15 points. Liana Lee was the individual champion, notching a meet-record 17:43.4 for her first collegiate victory. Lee came in four seconds ahead of Anna Soares (17:47.6), while Rachel Moen (17:51.1), Grace Baxter (17:52.2) and Marjourie Lopez (17:54.6) rounded out the top-five.

UP NEXT
The top two teams and first four individual finishers (not from an automatic qualifying or at-large team) from each regional site will secure a bid to the NCAA Championships in Columbia, Missouri, on Nov. 22.