State College, Pa., Nov. 10, 2004- Penn State will host the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Region Cross Country Championship this Saturday at the Penn State Blue-White Golf Courses. The women¡¯s 6K race will begin at 11:00 a.m. with the men¡¯s 10K race to follow at 12:00 p.m. The top two teams in each race automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships Nov. 22 in Terre Haute, Ind. Four at-large individual runners will also qualify from the regional to the NCAA Championships.

The men¡¯s field features three nationally ranked teams led by seventh ranked Georgetown. Villanova (No. 18) and American (No. 24) are also ranked coming into the weekend. The Penn State men finished fifth at the regional last season and fourth in 2000, the last time Penn State hosted the meet. In the 2000 Regional Championship, Stephen Ondieki of Fairleigh Dickenson broke the 10K course record and won the race with a time of 30:21.06.

Returning this season for Penn State is All-Big Ten and All-Regional sophomore Dan Mazzocco. He is the Mid-Atlantic Regional defending champion (30:26). Mazzocco will get a strong challenge from 2004 Big East Champion Bobby Curtis of Villanova who finished 14th (30:57) at the regional meet last season.

The women¡¯s field will feature two Top 25 nationally ranked teams in No. 14 Villanova and No. 20 Princeton. The Penn State women finished fourth last year and earned their second straight trip to the NCAA Championships. The Penn State women were seventh the last time the Nittany Lions hosted the meet in 2000.

Returning for the Penn State women is All-Big Ten and All-Region senior Molly Landreth who finished fourth at last year¡¯s regional meet and is coming off her second straight fourth place finish at the Big Ten Championships. She is one of seven runners that finished in the top 10 of last year¡¯s regional championship that return this year. West Virginia senior Megan Metcalfe, an All-American and 2002 Mid-Atlantic Region champion, will be a strong contender for the 2004 title.